Panacea
by Swan's Catastrophe
Summary: Without warning, Reed crushed his lips to hers in a passionate kiss. Ending the kiss just as quickly, he pulled away, growling "Shut up" before continuing his shoveling.  Hayley's soul belongs to him, but has he captured more in the process? R&R!
1. Ghost Town

_**A/N: I was bored, and was hit with this awesome idea for a story. I began writing, and within twenty minutes...BAM, first chapter. Read, enjoy, review, tell me your thoughts- and I'll post the next one up.  
Don't forget to review, lovies!**_

_**- Swan's Catastrophe  
**_

* * *

_**Chapter 1: Ghost Town**_

_It's nearly over, the last train is here  
And it's leaving behind those tears  
This is the badlands  
The worst place to fear  
Making place for the ones we left here  
They're calling, calling  
To say goodbye_

- Ghost Town, Shiny Toy Guns

Two weeks. There were only two weeks left before I lost everything, two weeks before I was left alone, two weeks before my mother's cancer would win. Two weeks before she died.

I stared at her gravestone, with a sad smile on my lips. That woman sure knew how to drive me crazy. I remember how we argued, when she first found out her cancer was terminal.

She accepted it. She was ready.

I wasn't.

When she told me she'd already bought her grave, I had smashed three paintings and pushed over two of her favorite vases.

I realize now, as I'm staring at her hollow grave, that I was being selfish. That I was hurting her more than she let on. Even as she was dying, she was still worried about how it was affecting _me_.

I sighed aloud and reread the small inscription carved on the tombstone for the seventh time tonight:

_Mellissa Kindler,loving mother,  
devoted widow,brave fighter,  
beloved by all_

Somehow, I didn't think it was enough. But that didn't surprise me. Eleven words wouldn't be able to capture what my mother really was. There was only one word for that: incredible.

The wind blew, rustling up the fallen leaves and sending an icy chill up my spine. I shivered, and lifted the collar of my jacket up to cover my chin as I glanced around. It had gotten dark a while ago, now there was a sprinkle of stars dotting the sky and the half moon had taken on a bloody tint. I shivered again, and decided I should be getting out of here.

In our small city in the middle of nowhere, our cemetery had quite the reputation. Its second name is Ghost Town. Kids my age are always whining about seeing someone's ghost whenever they come here.

Of course, no one bothers to ask what the kids were doing out here in the middle of the night, in the first place. Most of the "ghosts," that my fellow high schoolers are seeing, are hallucinations from the drugs they come out here to take. I don't blame them really, if I was sure that I would be stuck here forever, I'd do drugs too. But still, they're all idiots.

I felt warm breath brush across the back of my neck and spun around, a small gasp escaping my lips.

Nothing.

Someone tugged my hair and I spun around again.

"Hasn't anyone warned you about this place, little girl?" came a silky, masculine voice. My eyes came to rest on a guy about my age; only, he was insanely, impossibly beautiful.

His pale skin was like some small beacon of life and vitality in this land for the dead. His hair was white, and falling in his eyes as he leaned casually against a large marble tombstone. My eyes met his and I jumped back with a small start. His eyes were red. Blood red.

"You're- you're- you-" I stuttered, feeling a blush creep up my cheeks when the boy raised a pale eyebrow in amusement.

"What?" He asked, taking a step towards me. "You've never seen an albino before?"

_Not a hot one_, I thought silently to myself, choosing not to answer the question aloud.

His angular face broke out into a smirk and he cocked his head to the side.

"You _really_ shouldn't be out here right now." The boy sighed, giving up on his scare tactic and resuming his position against the tombstone.

Curiosity won out over annoyance.

"Why not?" I asked, grateful that my voice had steadied.

His red eyes snapped up to mine, and he made a show of deliberately turning his head away to stare out at the sea of graves. The silent treatment.

"Well?" I demanded, bringing my hands to rest on my hips "I'm not going anywhere until you tell me _why_ you want me to leave."

The boy snorted and rolled his eyes but turned back to me. "I'm meeting someone. Someone who shouldn't be within a ten mile radius of a cute little thing like yourself, so scat."

I frowned at the obvious condescension in his voice and raised my chin slightly.

"No. I was here first."

At this, the boy chuckled and turned to me with raised eyebrows "Just because you didn't see me, doesn't mean I wasn't here. I saw the entire little tear fest over by that empty grave." He paused to smirk "Tell me, do you usually come down to the graveyard to cry over graves that have yet to be filled?"

I felt my features harden and I stared at him coldly.

"That grave is my mother's. She's dying in two weeks."

He wasn't even paying attention. Instead, he was glancing around the graveyard with quick, jerky movements as if someone was moving around out there and he wanted to keep an eye on them. Another scare tactic, I assumed. He was trying to make me think that there was something out there, so that I would leave.

"Everyone dies," he replied absently, still scowling at something I couldn't see.

I resisted the urge to smack him, and instead turned to make my way back towards the town. I heard the boy curse behind me, and then I was soaring through the air, heading in the wrong direction. I only registered that I had landed in my mother's grave, before someone or something landed on me, and the ground gave out.

I screamed as red eyes watched me falling from every direction.

This couldn't be happening. Where did my mother's grave lead to, the center of the earth?

After several minutes of breathing heavily I realized that I was no longer falling, but sitting on something solid. Ground.

I opened my eyes to see that I was in a nicely decorated room. Almost like a foyer. The dirt ceiling turning into a regular ceiling shook me from my reverie and I leaped up.

"Settle down there, sparky. You took quite a tumble."

I knew that voice. My eyes zeroed in on the boy from the graveyard and I unleashed my most hostile-looking glare. He just chuckled and leaned back against what looked like a workshop table. Taking another look around, I realized, this place _was_ a workshop.

"What are we doing here, what happened?" I demanded.

"Well, I just saved your ass from being mauled by my former client. The reason I brought you here is because I have a bit of a proposition."

I raised my eyebrows, choosing to ignore all of the buzzing thoughts going on inside my head. This was crazy.

"What kind of proposition?" I asked.

"I save your mother, if you come to work for me," the boy replied.

"Work for you? For how long? Who the hell are you?"

"Yes, work for me. I haven't worked out the specifics of how long yet, and who I am is not important- yet."

"How…there's no way you could save my mother," I said, glaring at him accusingly. His eyes lit up with fiery delight and a slow smile spread across his features.

"Try me. There isn't much that I can't do"

"What will I be doing, if I work for you?" I asked. This was crazy. I was probably just asleep. Yeah, that's it. I'm sleeping.

"Also not important right now," the boy replied smoothly.

"Do I at least get your name?" I asked, frustration leaking into my tone. He rolled his molten-red eyes and sighed.

"Reed."

"Reed?" I repeated.

The boy, Reed, stared at me with a small frown.

"Are you slow or something?" he asked. I felt a very different kind of heat rush to my cheeks at that question. Prick.

"So," he said, quickly changing the subject. Wise of him "Do I have your word?"

I brought my hands to my hips for the second time tonight.

"Shouldn't _I_ be the one making sure that you keep your word?" I argued.

"Fine, how about we sign on it."

I was about to ask him where the hell we could find a piece of paper, but a thick scroll of parchment appeared in his hands, along with a quill pen. I gaped at him as he began writing on the thick piece of paper.

What. The. Fuck?

He handed me the parchment when he was finished. I didn't miss the small smirk on his lips when he noticed my still shocked expression.

"Just sign the dotted line."

I glanced over the parchment to look at him, before giving a defeated sigh, and signing my name. Once I was done, the parchment set on fire and burned in my fingers, yet left me completely unscathed. Stupid, stupid, stupid. This was so crazy.

Reed tsked at me "Hasn't anyone told you to never sign your name on a contract that you haven't read?"

I felt myself grow cold as Reed sighed, as if disappointed.

"I own you now," he proclaimed, and glanced at me, adding as an afterthought "Don't worry, I'll keep my end of the bargain."

I'm Hayley Kindler. And I just signed myself into a whole new world of trouble.


	2. Get Out Alive

_**A/N: Yay! New chapter already! lol. I'm trying this new thing where I write the chapters a few days ahead of posting them, that way, you guys always have something. Thanks to my two reviewers, Nadii and Nikki! You guys are so amazing, and if I didn't have you I'd stop writing forever. To those of you who are reading, but not reviewing- review! Seriously, words can't express how much I appreciate feedback good or bad. So do it, it makes me happy, which makes me write- and then you guys get a chapter!  
Enjoy this one, it was a tad hard to write, so i hope it's not too noticeable that I struggled.  
Don't forget to review!  
**_

_**- Swan's Catastrophe  
**_

_**Chapter 2: Get Out Alive**_

_Don't put your life in someone's hands_

They're bound to steal it away

Don't hide your mistakes

'Cause they'll find you, burn you

- Get Out Alive, Three Days Grace  


* * *

"What?" I said, barely able to contain my disbelieving laughter as I stared at the pale, unforgivingly beautiful, Reed.

"I Own You" He replied slowly, as if he were talking to someone with mental disabilities "Not so much You, but your soul according to the contract you just signed"

"You told me to sign it!" I replied, grasping for any kind of scapegoat. He was insane. This entire situation was insane!

"Do you usually just do whatever complete strangers tell you to? Especially the strangers who can create an entire workroom thirty feet underneath a graveyard?"

That shut me up.

I was left to do nothing but scowl at the tiled floor as I smoldered with anger.

"You don't own me, you can't" I grit out after a drawn out silence. I was trying more to convince myself more than anything else.

This was too much. Way too much, way too soon.

"I do" Reed sighed, growing weary of the argument "And I can. It's in the contract"

My eyes snapped up to him, and this time he did shrink away from my glare.

"Fine." I snarled, knowing that at this point I would sell my soul to the devil if it kept my mother alive. Maybe that's what I'd just done. I shrugged the small, creeping, feeling off and tried to calm myself down by chanting _So, I sold my soul. Girls in Hollywood do it all the time, it's no biggie…_

"As long as you keep your end of the bargain" I said once I had calmed myself.

The corner of Reed's mouth tilted up in a pleased, arrogant, crooked smirk. "Would you like to sign on it?"I glared at him and we both settled into an awkward silence.

He and I stared at each other for awhile, neither of us saying anything, and then I got anxious and had to say _something_. The silence was killing me. I got the faintest idea that Reed sensed my apprehension and that it somehow pleased him- made him more powerful. At least in my eyes.

"So what _are you_?" I asked again, staring at him up and down for the upteenth time since I'd met him. He was built like a cheetah. Completely lithe, completely agile, completely predatory. It frightened me.

_Perhaps in a different setting, he could be an angel_ I thought to myself as Reed made a sound that was some sort of mix between a growl and a groan.

"I already told you, that's not important, yet" He said icily, quickly losing his patience.

Good, maybe he'd get sick of me and let me go. I still had doubts about the whole 'I posses your soul' thing. But if this was the real deal, and when dealing with me, it totally could be; I didn't want to chance it.

It was times like this when I wished I had listened to my dad's lectures about parapsychology and preternatural beings. Why was it after he died that I started to believe in all the crap he spouted?

"Well, when will it be important for me to know what you are?" I snapped, shutting up the mental babble.

Reed narrowed his eyes and took a threatening step towards me. In return, I took a step away from him, and suddenly, we were no longer in the workroom. We were back in the graveyard.

I glanced around myself, dumbstruck. I was sure that I had officially lost it. My mother dying had driven me over the edge, and now I was some insane loon; lost forever in her own subconscious mind. Though, what this whole situation was symbolizing I had no clue.

"Go home, get some rest. I'll call for you tomorrow" Reed said in a monotonous tone. I turned back to answer him, but when I looked, he was gone.

There was no one.

I bit down on my lower lip hard and let my eyes adjust to the darkness of the cemetery.

Still, no pale, beautiful, infuriating boy bursting with lurid vitality. After standing there like an idiot for a full ten minutes and still seeing nothing, I gave a small sigh of relief. Perhaps this place was haunted after all. Even if Reed seemed more real than most people, he was a shade. A spirit. Not real. Nothing.

After a few seconds of repeating those words to myself, I nodded, and began my long trek home.

This whole ghost thing was definitely going to make visiting my mom here a lot more complicated.

I arrived home, some twenty minutes later. The house was completely empty except for my pet cat, Lucy.

Not bothering with dinner, I went upstairs to shower. Still feeling the aftereffects of my close encounter with the sixth kind and hoping that a hot shower would ease my mind a bit. Quickly stripping down, and turning the knob to scalding hot, I stepped into the shower and let the boiling water burn away all my troubles and worries. But the safe feeling I got when I was in the shower didn't last long. It could have been my imagination, but I could _swear_ I felt something touching me; rubbing my shoulder blades, trailing its fingertips down my spine, and resting them on my hips, and then brushing against the nape of my neck. I jumped out of the shower, tripping over the border, and cracking my skull against the counter as I fell; splattering blood all over the mirror.

The entire experience shook me to my very core. Toweling up blood, is never a fun experience. But when it's your own, it's ten times worse. Sitting in bed, and feeling like the night couldn't get much worse, I fell asleep. Hoping tomorrow would be better.

Once I was in school, once I was by my mother's side at the hospital, I would forget about this entire thing. It would just be a forgotten nightmare.

A nightmare starring a devilishly handsome boy, a contract, and an idiotic girl who thinks it's okay to make bargains with obscure, albino, magical, strangers.

Fuck, I had gotten myself into a hell of a mess.

The next day went by pretty uneventfully. Before school, I stopped by the hospital to visit my mom. It was weird, but she actually looked better, healthier. After a quick hug and kiss goodbye, I hurried to school. The high school in my town was nothing special. It was small, home to only five hundred students, and it was boring. Red brick everywhere, with gray, metal doors. The hall ways were the same bleak color as the doors, and the lockers, and the classrooms. That was the definition of my school, of this entire town; bleak. When the last bell rang, I gave a relieved sigh, and rushed to my locker chatting with a friend along the way.

After that, it got weird. I remember facing the school exit. I kept glancing at it over my friends shoulder as she chatted with me. I made eye contact with her for a small second to laugh at something funny she said, and took another glance towards the exit to find it in front of the door, seeming completely oblivious to the students walking around him, was Reed; in all his pale, ethereal, glory. I felt the color drain from my face as my horrified eyes met his amused, swirling, red ones. This couldn't be happening.

"Hayley? Are you okay?" My friend asked, glancing back at Reed before turning back to me with a worried expression "What is it? What are you looking at"

I froze, staring between Reed and the statuesque brunette in front of me."You don't…see him?" I asked, on the verge of hysteria. Melody, my friend glanced back towards the exit, staring directly at Reed, and looked back at me- seeming more troubled than before.

"See who?"

I blanched before quickly composing my features into indifference. "Nothing, never mind" I said quickly. Melody nodded, said goodbye, and left. I stared at Reed before making the long, shameful, walk towards him. He was dressed in black from head to toe. Grim Reaper? Is that how he could keep my mom alive?

Timidly, I reached out a hand and poked his arm; making sure he was solid. Reed only raised an amused eyebrow and smirked.

"Satisfied?" He asked, red eyes shining with an emotion I couldn't place."Not in the least" I grumbled, before following him off of school grounds.

I was so stupid. So, very, stupid.


	3. Blue

_**A/N: this one is a tad shorter than the last, not by much though. I just wanted to again thank my lovely reviewers, Nikki, Nadii, and Moi Productions Ea Heinz. You other readers, review please! Seriously, it's painless- and it helps out alot in my case.**_

**_I'll have the next chapter up for you soon!_**

**_- Swan's Catastrophe_**

* * *

_**C**__**hapter 3: Blue**_

_Fate changes faster than the death of light, _

_You provide the envy and I'll provide the spite, _

_Reflections cutting every face in two, _

_Casting shadows in the pale shade of blue._

_- Blue, The Birthday Massacre_

* * *

"Where are we going?" I asked for the third time since I'd followed Reed off of school grounds, this time a little more breathlessly than the last. Reed ignored me, again. It was getting more obvious that we were headed towards the graveyard, but I wanted his assurance that we wouldn't be falling through an invisible black hole or something. Not surprisingly, he didn't give me that assurance. And a few seconds later, we were back in his "workroom".

I shook my head back and forth, trying to shake the contradicting thoughts from my head. One part of me was rejecting everything that was going on, trying to convince me that everything I was seeing wasn't real. The other half, was fighting the other, trying to make me accept it and move on before I literally drove myself insane. Right now, I wasn't completely sure which was winning. I knew only that, what was happening was completely crazy and insane and impossible- but it _was_ happening.

Reed was leaning against the work table, watching me patiently, with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Why did you take me here, again?" I asked, letting my eyes adjust to the dimly lit room.

"Test run," Reed replied curtly "To see if you can actually do your job"

"And what's my job?"

Reed let out a sigh of frustration and glared at me over the shiny scalpels, needles, and other intimidating things he was collecting from a drawer.

_What the fuck have I gotten myself into._

"You ask too many questions" He growled two octaves lower than his usual voice. I felt a small shiver trail down my spine, and snapped my lips shut. I waited in silence while Reed collected the rest of his tools from the drawer, and walked them over to the work table.

"Now, usually," Reed began "In my line of work, the less you know, the better. Safety precautions and all that, so to keep yours and my investment safe- I'm not going to tell you a lot"

"Cause you'd been doing so much of that before" I said sarcastically, rolling my eyes. Reed fixed a searing red glare on me, and I took the hint to shut up.

He walked around the room before standing a few feet away from me and I watched in amazed horror as a rotting corpse appeared lying on the center of the worktable. Reed motioned for me to come closer, and I took five wary steps towards the table so that I was standing on the side opposite him.

"This is a demon" Reed proclaimed boredly "A dead one"

My gaze raked over the corpse in front of me. It was disgusting. It might have been a handsome man, once upon a time, but now…

The flesh was a dry and withered brown color, and it was curling upwards and peeling off in some areas. The hair was the color of dried blood and was clumped together in thick mats and tangles. The face was frozen in a look of pain, and the eyes, the eyes were filmed over by death but they were unmistakably red. The demon had red irises. Just like Reed.

I chanced an accusing glance at Reed, who was eyeing the corpse with distaste and quite a bit of indifference.

"Continue," I prompted, showing that I was done looking at the grotesque thing on the table. Reed's tongue flicked out and traced his lower lip, as he rolled his eyes skyward.

"When a demon has been dead for a little over a week, it's brain produces secretions of liquid life. Since, demons spend most of their lives stealing the lives of others- they give it back in death. This, liquid life, can be used as an elixir to most supernatural beings, but mainly, it is sold as a drug. The drug is called Panacea, and it literally cures all ills. The main clientele that the dealers receive is from vampires-"

My mind had already caught up to where this was going, "Wait, let me get this straight. You're a drug dealer who sells liquid life, which you have to get by extracting the secretions from the brains of demons who've been dead long enough so that they smell nice and ripe- and then you turn around and sell it to _vampires_?"

Reed raised an eyebrow as if to ask _anymore questions_.

"Why do vampires need an elixir? Aren't they like, invincible?" I asked

"Yes. But they're also dead" Reed explained "What does darkness crave? Light. What does Sweet need? Sour. What does death yearn for? Life. Vampires are unable to feel, unable to have human emotions. Demons, experience human emotions ten fold. So think of what it would be like to be a vampire, feeling nothing, wanting nothing- and then getting injected by liquid life. You'd be able to feel, to love, to experience living. The amount of business we get from Panacea, isn't really surprising when you think of it from that perspective"

"Yeah? Well what about that perspective where sickos like you exploit people and their short comings for your own financial gain?" I spat, angrily.

"Insulting the person who holds your mother's life in the balance isn't wise, little girl" Reed tsked.

I glared at him viciously, but he didn't even seem to notice. Instead, he snapped his fingers twice and pointed at the demon corpse.

"Get to work" He said, before taking a seat at the nearby work bench. I could feel his molten eyes burning a hole through me as he stared.

No manners whatsoever.

Glancing between the scalpel, syringe, and corpse, I looked over at Reed.

"What do I do?" I asked. Reed snorted, before pointedly staring at the syringe.

"Shove it up his nose until you feel the brain, and then suck it up into the needle. If gold and purple swirls come out, you hit the jackpot- if not, too bad"

I frowned at the corpse "You mean they don't all have it?"

"No, it's really like a game of chance." Reed said, and motioned again for me to pick up the syringe.

I obeyed, unable to believe that I was actually going through with this, and lifted the syringe. As soon as my hand closed around the cylindrical tube; my entire body locked up and froze. I shut my eyes tightly, taking calming breaths.

_It's for mom_ I told myself _You saw her at the hospital, she looks better already. You can't let her down._

After a few seconds, I opened my eyes and lifted the syringe towards the demon. I had to force myself to muster up the willpower to shove the needle up it's nose, and then, I felt resistance. The brain.

I flinched involuntarily, my teeth gritting together, as I began to extract.

There was no purple and gold. Instead, it was some disgusting, thick, gray mush, mixed with red swirls. And the _smell_ that attacked my nostrils was enough to make me vomit all over the floor.

Reed was standing, now, looking thoroughly alarmed. Yeesh, he acted like he's never seen someone throw up before. But as I took a closer look, Reed wasn't looking at me, but at the corpse on the table.

It was…moving.

My eyes met Reed's and my fears were answered by the look in his eyes.

That, was not supposed to happen.


	4. From The Stars

_**A/N: okay, this chapter's a tad longer- but i'll try to get it up to 3000 words by the next chapter :D**_

**_Anywhoo, I wanted to thank everyone for the awesome feedback to this story! Don't stop, now lol.  
Like always: Read, Enjoy, Review_**

**_Much Love,_**

**_ - Swan's Catastrophe_**

_**

* * *

**_

_**Chapter 4: From The Stars**_

_He catches raindrops from his window,_

_It reminds him how we fall_

_From the stars back to our cities, _

_Where we've never felt so small_

_Raindrops from his window_

_Making puddles in his hands_

_He sees how quick the water's rising _

_As another raindrop lands._

_- From The Stars, White Lies_

* * *

I glanced between Reed and the demon, as it slowly made its way off the work table. I took a step away from the thing as it slid off the table and shuffled forward.

"What is this? Some sort of joke or something?" I asked, voice cracking as I tried to contain my panic.

Reed, quickly composing himself raised an eyebrow at the would-be-dead demon.

"Yeah, I'm gonna go with no on that one. My jokes are generally done more tastefully." He replied, voice betraying nothing.

"So what do we do?" I asked, slowly edging away from the demon and moving towards Reed.

"Well," He said when I reached his side "It hasn't attacked either of us yet, so that's a good sign"

I nodded. "But shouldn't it be dead? I kind of sucked its brain out"

At this, Reed resumed frowning at the creature as it shuffled along the workroom.

"I don't know. This is the first time I've seen an undead demon" Reed admitted.

"I'd like to leave now" I squeaked, watching as the demon moved towards us.

Reed rolled his eyes, but a half-second later we were back in the graveyard.

I gazed up at the glowing half moon, before my eyes trailed down to stare at the river of tombstones.

"Nice night" Reed sighed, lying down on a recently made grave and weaving his fingers behind his head as he crossed one ankle over the other. I stared at the boy curiously, a small smirk tugging up my lips, and turned back towards the town; ready to walk home.

"Where are you going?" He asked absently, busy staring up at the sky.

What he found so interesting about the sky, I didn't want to know.

"I'm probably going to grab some dinner, and go to bed." I replied, staring at the cemetery gates longingly. I turned back to Reed, to find him inches away; flinching before I could stop myself, Reed smirked as he brushed passed me.

"I want to come. Does IHOP sound good?"

I blew a stray piece of brown hair from my face and scowled after Reed, irritation leaking into my voice as I replied:

"Sure, why not"

He wasn't even listening.

* * *

"So, what made you want to leave the graveyard all of a sudden?" I asked curiously as I chewed my third piece of French toast. Reed was eyeing my eating habits with both a smile and a hint of distaste if that were possible, while he tapped his fingers idly against the restaurant table.

"Are you saying that you enjoy spending all day, everyday, in your empty house?" He retorted, replying to my question with one of his own.

"No, not-"

"Exactly," He interrupted "So leave me alone"

My eyebrows reached my hairline as I stared at him disbelievingly "You're the one who wanted to come along! You probably knew that me asking questions would be involved. Especially since you're all mysterious all the time, anyway"

Reed's red eyes flashed and I sensed that an argument was quickly approaching.

"Well, if I'm mysterious all the time, why would I stop being mysterious while I eat?" He hissed, downing his coffee in one gulp.

I glared at him, sinking lower into my booth seat. God damn argumentative- whatever he is.

"What are you?" I asked once again. Reed paused, the forkful of omelet frozen midway between his mouth and the plate, as he glanced at me. His red eyes narrowed and he shoved the omelet into his mouth, chewing slowly.

"I'm getting real tired of your voice, real quick" He growled. My glare deepened, and again, I sank lower into my seat. This boy was draining to be around. Literally, it felt like I was being sucked dry just sitting across from him.

"Well hurry up. It's getting late and I have school tomorrow" I muttered.

"You can leave" Reed shrugged "The people here can't see me anyway"

The color drained from my face and I glanced around frantically, leaning in close to hiss at him.

"You mean they all think I've been sitting here talking to myself this entire time!"

"Pretty much" He admitted after a few seconds, glancing around, himself.

I had to use all of my willpower not to launch myself across the table and stab him in the eye with my fork. Apparently, he found this all very amusing. God damn prick.

After a few seconds of watching me boil and shake with fury, Reed chuckled.

"Calm down there, sparky. It was a joke" He said, still chuckling.

That time, I really did launch myself across the table at him. Only, when I tackled him we went down on soft grass, and all I could see as we fell was glowing red eyes.

We were back at the Graveyard.

"Get off of me" Reed snarled, white hair glittering against the light of the moon.

Grinning smugly to myself, I rolled myself onto the grass and off of Reed; not failing to notice the well toned body he had hidden underneath those drab clothes of his in the process.

Sighing, and rolling over to stare at the sky, I watched as Reed sat up to readjust himself- glaring at me the entire time.

The grin on my face grew wider. The boy needed to be knocked down a few pegs, it was for his own good.

Suddenly, I was standing on my feet, being held up by Reed.

His red eyes were smoldering as he shook me angrily.

"Attack me again, and we'll see just how long your mom can survive without my help" He growled darkly. The grin was wiped clean off my face.

"Now get inside" He commanded. My expression turned confused, and then I realized that we were standing outside my house.

How the hell does he do that? I thought to myself

Aloud, I said "How the hell do you know where I live?"

Reed shrugged "I followed you home last night" He said coolly; no shame at all.

I went back to scowling at him.

"So, what, you're stalking me now?" I accused. Reed gave me a creepy grin.

"No," He replied "Stalking is the act of following prey stealthily. Now, technically, I've already captured you, so there would be no need for me to "stalk". I'm simply, as I said before, protecting my investment"

I shook my head back and forth slowly, trying to understand this boy and his absurd logic.

"You're weird" I said finally, taking the few steps towards my door.

Reed sighed taking a few steps away from my house "Tell me something I don't know, sparky"

"And quit calling me that" I snapped "I'm not a dog"

"_Sure_" He replied insolently, drawing out the word.

I don't think I've ever had to glare so much in my life until I met this ass.

"Sleep well, sparky. Don't let the bed creatures bite"

I brushed off the "sparky" to grin at him "It's bed-bugs"

"Huh?" Reed said, looking confused.

"The saying is Don't Let The Bed-Bugs Bite" I explained.

"Bed Bugs?" Reed echoed "You mean you humans haven't discovered the bed creatures yet? I could've sworn a client was telling me someone had been devoured by one recently…"

"Devoured?" It was my turn to repeat things that had just been said.

"Yeah, bed creatures are these huge, disgusting white larvae looking things with a circular mouth- like a leech. They usually fit under beds, but sometimes they're too fat and have to hide inside the closet. They mainly stick with small children, but you're a tiny little thing, they may fancy themselves a small human."

My mouth was open in a wide "O" as I stared at the so called albino; immediately remembering the fears I had as a child about monsters under my bed and in my closet. Had that been real? Oh my god…

He gave me that ridiculously adorable crooked smirk and raised a pale eyebrow.

"Want me to check?" He asked.

I nodded blankly and followed him inside. Bed creatures?

* * *

"Yep, this one's safe too" Reed said, checking the last of the rooms- mine. I gave a small sigh of relief and collapsed down onto my bed, feeling safe now that Reed had confirmed there were no creatures hiding under my bed that would devour me in the middle of the night.

"So this is your room?" Reed asked unsurely as he glanced around. I nodded raising myself up on my elbows to look around. The walls were painted like a dark night sky, and there were glowing LED lights within the walls that became shining stars when you flicked the light switch on. The ceiling lamp was done in the shape of the planet's rotation around the sun - the light bulb being the sun, with little decals of the planets hanging around it- and the ceiling was painted by an actual artist. It depicted thick, dark clouds, being lit up by a smiling crescent moon and a smirking sun. My bed had silk, lavender sheets and comforters, and it was covered by a sparkling canopy.

"Yeah" I said, my eyes falling on the desk in the corner where my pictures from the meteor shower from two years ago lay sprawled about. "I used to be obsessed with becoming an astronomer, studying the stars and galaxies and all that."

I resumed my reclined position in bed and stared at the ceiling.

"What changed?" Reed asked, looking through my book case, filled to the brim with science books. I snorted.

"My mom got diagnosed with terminal cancer. All of our money went in to her treatments. Now, we're fifty thousand dollars in debt, we'll probably have to sell this place, and I wouldn't be able to afford college even if I cared about it."

Reed worked his jaw as he processed this information. After a few seconds he raised his eyes to me.

"Do you still care about it?"

"Look who's asking all the questions now" I replied.

"Fine, I get it. Sore topic" Reed said. We settled into an eerie silence, both of us deep in thought. After a few seconds, I spoke up.

"You know what always interested me most about space?" I asked him rhetorically "Knowing that there are billions of other galaxies out there, too far for anyone to reach. There could be places out there just like this one, with people just like ours wondering if there's more. Wondering if there are worlds out there that are home to magnificent and horrible creatures, things we've only dreamed or fantasized about." I paused to look at Reed "Who'd of guessed that those creatures found out about us first, and are living here, right underneath everyone's noses"

Reed smirked, leaning against the bookcase and crossing his arms. "Who'd of guessed" He repeated. Red eyes shining.


	5. Make Me Wanna Die

_**A/N: Okay, new chapter! I just want to apologize, for not really getting into plot up until the fifth chapter. It's not usually how I go about things, but it's necassary for this story. Just rejoice now, cause the story's going to be a lot more interesting from here on out! Also, thank you all of my lovely, amazing, incredible reviewers- knowing that people enjoy this stuff is what keeps me updating!**_

**_Without further adieu, your new chapter, lovelies.  
Read, Enjoy, Review_**

**_- Swan's Catastrophe_**

_**

* * *

**_

_**Chapter 5: Make Me Wanna Die**_

_Take me, I'm alive, Never was a girl with a wicked mind_

_But everything looks better when the sun goes down_

_I had everything, opportunities for eternity_

_And I could belong to the night,_

_Your eyes, your eyes, I can see in your eyes_

_Your eyes…you make me wanna die_

_- Make Me Wanna Die, The Pretty Reckless  
_

* * *

"Hayley? _Hello_…what the hell is wrong with you today?" Tiffany's high pitched voice came from across the lunch table; snapping me out of my thoughts. My eyes focused in on her frowning, slightly worried face, and I shrugged.

"Nothing. Tired, I guess" I muttered, before blankly biting into my pizza.

"Have you seen your mom? How's she doing?" Tiffany asked, even though I had made it clear I didn't want conversation.

"Yeah. She's doing good. Really good" I replied, smiling slyly to myself.

Tiffany nodded, offering a smile of her own before turning to our other friends- finally getting the idea. At that same moment, my phone buzzed against my thigh from its place in my pocket. Giving a bored sigh, I took it out and read my new text:

_From: Unknown_

_Get to the graveyard now.  
I need your help.  
__And don't even think about  
__finishing your pizza.  
__Leave. Now._

I reread the message a few times, frowning to myself, before a new text came in. It was only four words this time _I said __**now**__, damnit_.

How the hell did that boy even get my number? And how did he know I planned on finishing my pizza before **I** even knew that I planned on finishing my pizza. How did he even know I was eating pizza?

God damn, annoying, insanely weird, albino supernatural boy.

I slid my tray across the table, letting the contents and the tray itself spill into the trash, before I packed up my things and got to my feet.

Tiffany glanced at me as I was just about to head for the door.

"Wait, where are you going?" She asked. I mentally cursed myself for not coming up with an excuse for this sort of thing.

'_Oh, I'm just going to hang out with an albino who sells demon brain excretions to vampires who want to "feel" _Somehow, I don't think Tiffany will believe that. My phone vibrated again, and I knew what Reed's next text said before I even read it.

Lie.

Scratching my head self consciously- I've never been the best liar- I gave her a strained smile.

"I just got a message from my mom's doctor. They're trying a new treatment and need my ok. I have to leave now, so just tell my teachers where I am?" I said, giving myself an inward pat on the back.

Tiffany nodded, and I let out a sigh of relief before I turned, and left the school.

Here goes nothing.

* * *

"Oh dear god" I gasped, staring ahead of me. I hadn't made it two steps into the graveyard before Reed appeared and dragged me down into his workroom. Somehow, he managed to leave out the part about the not-dead- demon still being here and blowing things up with its eyes, when he texted me.

"Kill it" Reed said simply, glaring at the thing from across the room.

"Me?" I said, whirling around to face him "What the hell am I supposed to do? The thing is blowing stuff up with its eyes"

"You brought it back" Reed shrugged.

"Did not"

"Well I sure as hell didn't. And the thing was definitely dead when I dug him up and dropped him on the table. He even smells dead" Reed said in his irritatingly calm voice, even though we were both trying to dodge the attacks of the undead demon.

"Where's the shovel?" I asked.

Reed inclined his head towards the far wall. I rolled my eyes, and stalked over to the shovel, quickly turning once I had it in my hands, and hitting the demon upside the head with it- hard. The thing didn't even seem to notice. I scowled and hit him again, harder.

Still nothing.

"Did you really think that was going to work?" Reed drawled, as he walked towards me. He pulled the shovel from my grip, his hands brushing against mine in the process, and I shivered. He was like an electric wire. You couldn't exactly see it on the surface, but with a simple thing like a _touch_, you could feel his power. He was as deceiving as a river's currents, or a dark room. A river's currents may look harmless, but the first chance they get, they drag you to the bottom, they'll keep you there, and they'll kill you there. A dark room, can seem like a dark room, but you never really know what it is. You never know what it holds. It's too dark to see anything. The possibilities could be endless of what you'll find in there, or what will find you. All of that was taken in with one simple brush of the hand, and now it was sending little sirens of alarm through my head, screaming something I already knew but hadn't really paid any attention to up until now.

_He's dangerous. He can kill you. He will kill you. He's not like us._ _**Run.**_

I took a step away from him, avoiding his piercing stare, and flinched when the shovel came down on the demon once again. This time, Reed hadn't gone for the head, but the spine. I heard several sharp cracks before the demon fell to the ground- dead. Again.

Reed sighed, throwing the shovel off to the side, before taking up the arms of the demon.

"Get the feet" He commanded coldly "We need to bury him before the werewolves catch the scent"

"From all the way down here?" I asked skeptically, grabbing the demon's legs and following as Reed led us back into the graveyard. He raised a pale eyebrow, red eyes darkening.

"You'd be surprised" He growled, expertly weaving us through the rows of tombstones until we came upon an empty, unmarked grave.

"So they can smell a dead demon from thirty feet under ground- but six feet is out of the question?" I laughed, being semi sarcastic, but honestly wanting to know the answer.

"No, they can smell this too. But at least if they find him here, I won't have a pack of werewolves in my workroom." Reed replied, grinning cutely.

I snickered, rolling my eyes as Reed none-too-gently kicked the demon into the grave.

He grabbed the shovel and began throwing dirt onto the body before stopping suddenly.

His red eyes flashed up, and snapped around as he stared at the empty graveyard warily.

"What the hell?" He whispered. On edge, I began wringing my hands as I looked around myself.

"What is it?" I asked, still looking around even though Reed had visibly relaxed.

"A client" He snarled, before disappearing.

I gave a startled little jump when Reed vanished, and began searching the dark hills of the graveyard more frantically.

"Reed?" I called unsurely.

There was a flash of white and I turned, expecting to see him there, red eyes narrowed in a nasty glare.

It wasn't Reed.

This was a boy, just as pale as Reed, but completely different looking. His hair was dark, his eyes were cold, and for some reason that I couldn't fathom, he wasn't as attractive as Reed was. But I think that was my own personal preference.

"Hey there cutie, is your boss around?" The boy asked, using some sort of accent I didn't recognize.

"You're three days early Jeremiah" Reed's smooth voice came from beside me. I jumped, completely unaware that I had been so close to him, and Reed responded by placing a firm hand on my shoulder, holding me in place. I didn't know why he felt the need to restrain me, but it worried me.

"I couldn't wait." Jeremiah replied, sounding desperate and out of control, nothing like the confident, attractive guy he'd been a mere second ago "I finished it all off a few days ago, and if I have to go with out it for any longer, I'll- I'll _snap_"

My eyes widened in alarm when Jeremiah's eyes flickered in my direction as he said that last part. Was I in danger, here?

_No shit Sherlock, you were in danger the second this albino weirdo walked into your life_

Reed shifted, stealthily moving himself between me and the twitching vampire, before patting Jeremiah on the shoulder.

"You got the cash?" Reed asked him, eyebrows raised. I was watching Jeremiah intently, and I must say, I was starting to get a tad freaked out.

His eyes…there was something wrong with his eyes. One second they'd be the cool, indifferent eyes of a predator, the next, they'd be the wide, terrified eyes of a scared and hurting human.

I took a small step back, and Jeremiah's eyes followed me before flicking back to Reed.

"I don't have all of it now" Jeremiah admitted, he started panicking when Reed sighed and began shaking his head. "But- but, I'll get it. I'll pay twice as much for the next one" Jeremiah promised.

Reed was still shaking his head "It doesn't work that way. You know the rules, Jeremiah"

Suddenly, Jeremiah's eyes were hard again, and his entire face seemed to turn into the stone face of a barbaric killer. Was this what they looked like all the time?

"Fine" Jeremiah said in a voice resembling the one I had first heard. His cold eyes looked me up and down slowly before he turned back to Reed. For some reason, the look the vampire gave me left me feeling completely…violated.

"How much for the human?" Jeremiah growled.

I felt myself go completely still as I glanced between the two supernaturals.

"Not for sale" Reed replied curtly, grabbing me by the arm and tugging me along behind him as we walked away from Jeremiah. Again, I felt like I had been grabbed by a barely contained, pulsing wire of pure energy and raw power. I idly wondered what the extent of Reed's abilities were.

"Next time, bring money!" Reed called at Jeremiah.

I turned back to sneak a peak at the vampire, but he was gone. I tensed up, feeling Goosebumps raise on my arms. Bad feeling, very bad feeling.

"Where'd he go?" I asked. Reed froze, and slowly turned around, his grip on my arm tightened painfully when he couldn't spot Jeremiah.

"He's still here" Reed murmured, mostly to himself "Somewhere"

"People only hide when they're up to no good" I blurted. Reed gave me a look that said he knew very well, why people hid.

His red eyes darkened as he and I stared at each other, and suddenly, he turned away; spotting something. At the same time, my entire side exploded in a world of pain. A small cry was ripped from my throat before I was tackled to the ground by stone. I stayed still for a few seconds, trying not to get myself in a panic- which always happened when I had the air knocked out of me. On top of not being able to breathe, my ribs hurt like a bitch.

Jeremiah's face appeared above me and his eyes were completely black. Nothing like the blue they had been before. His hand snaked up to wrap around my throat, and he closed it around my windpipe.

"Make him give me the elixir" Jeremiah snarled, getting so close to my face that our noses touched. I gagged, and again tried to stay calm as I attempted to peel his fingers from around my throat.

Out of the corners of my blurring vision, I saw Reed walk up beside me. He tossed his leg back, and flung it forward casually; his foot connected with Jeremiah right in the ribs, before sending the vampire flying a good few feet away.

As soon as Jeremiah's weight was off, I sat up straight and gasped for air. God, it even hurt to breathe.

Reed was pacing back and forth beside me like a caged animal, his fiery red eyes set on Jeremiah.

There was a flash of white, and Jeremiah was no longer lying on the ground a few feet away. He was smashing Reed's head against a nearby tombstone. And Reed, was doing nothing.

I had a feeling that the red eyed albino was holding back on using violence for my sake. I really wish he wouldn't.

Without thinking, I crawled over to the grave we had been burying the demon in, before Jeremiah showed up, and I grabbed the shovel in both hands. Sneaking up on Jeremiah, I raised the shovel high over my head and swung it down, aiming for his spine like Reed had done with the demon.

At the same moment, Reed had managed to wrestle himself out of Jeremiah's grasp. Red liquid the same color as his eyes, was dripping from his nose and mouth.

He only had time to shout "Hayley, no!" before the shovel connected, and I was showered with vampire blood. Jeremiah fell to the ground, dead. We both stared at the corpse, the same horrified expression I wore was echoed on Reed's. It was quiet except for our heavy breathing, and neither of us said anything. After several minutes of silence, we both suddenly snapped out of it.

I dropped the shovel on the ground numbly, as I began to shake. Reed stood up, staining his white hair with red as he ran a bloody hand through it.

"What the hell have you done?" He demanded in a cracking voice. I looked between Reed and dead Jeremiah.

"I-I-I"

"You just fucked us!" Reed exploded, angrily kicking a tombstone. It crumbled into a million tiny pieces by his feet. Reed covered his eyes with his hands, pressing them hard against his face as he took deep, calming breaths.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

Reed's furious red eyes snapped to mine, and he advanced on me threateningly.

"I _mean_," He snarled "That you just killed Jeremiah Sutter, son of the most ruthless and corrupt area sheriff in the world. And guess whose fucking area we're in? Jeremiah Sutter's fucking father's."

I stared at him blankly, as he began pacing, and cursing, and kicking things.

"What does that mean?" I asked finally, still feeling a bit numb.

Reed stopped, red eyes slowly meeting mine.

"It means that all of my work has been for nothing. All of _your_ work has been for nothing. By this time next week, we'll both probably be dead"

I felt the color leave my face as I stared at Reed. The numbness was quickly fading, and it was being replaced by panic.

"Shit" I muttered.

Reed barked a nervous laugh as he continued pacing.

"Yeah, shit"

I stared out at the sea of graves and imagined my own tombstone right beside my mother's. If what Reed was saying is true, that would be the near future for me. I sighed, and began a pacing, cursing, and kicking fit of my own.

I'm Hayley Kindler. And I just completely fucked us.


	6. Breath

_**A/N: New chapter! And with Reed's POV! I realize that this chapter shows a darker side of him, but you have to understand that Hayley only perceives the things about Reed that he wants her to perceive. So while she could be thinking that he's in a bad mood- he could really just be distressed by some inner turmoil going on that Hayley has no idea about because she's not a mind-reader, and taking his distress out on her verbally. Does that make sense? Kinda? Maybe?  
Hm, well, yeah, anyway, I'm not too thrilled with this chapter- I just didn't know what to do with it. I had the idea all perfect and crystal clear in my head, but transferring it onto paper proved to be a task more difficult than I assumed. My muse got a good throttling before I finally got this out of her, so without much else to say:**_

**_Read, Enjoy, Review,  
_**

**_Yours Always,_**

**_ - Swan's Catastrophe_**

_**

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**_

_**Chapter 6: Breath**_

_So sacrifice yourself, and let me have what's left._

_I know that I can find the fire in your eyes._

_I'm going all the way, get away, please._

- _Breath, Breaking Benjamin_

* * *

_**Reed's POV**_

He brushed his hand through his hair again, reveling at how it calmed him down if only for a few seconds. This was bad. Really fucking bad.

But really, it was the human's fault. She couldn't just let him handle it. She just had to get involved like a mindless little meat sack- and now they were going to be hunted like a god damn beast of the night. Reed's red eyes flicked over to Hayley. She was pacing along the grounds, glancing every now and then towards the dead vampire. He cocked his head to the side as he watched her.

There was definitely something different about her.

Usually, humans gave off a dull light; a glowing beacon. _She_ was lit up like the god damn fourth of July. It took everything in his power not to storm over there and suck the life out of her- literally.

He felt it then, the urge. It overtook him before he even had a chance to stop it. He _wanted _her.

_Stop this, we have larger issues right now, than your hunger_ his inner voice hissed.

Like flipping a switch, the blood lust was gone and he could focus. He strode over to Jeremiah, barely able to conceal the anger that was swirling within him, and tossed the dead vampire over his shoulder.

Hayley, noticing that he was now walking away, followed Reed into the denser area of the graveyard, where they hadn't finished burying the undead demon.

"Pull him out" Reed commanded in a clipped voice, motioning towards the demon. Hayley flashed wide, disbelieving eyes at Reed, but quickly complied when she was met by a look from Reed's own fiery eyes. Not wasting any time, she hopped into the grave and began pulling the demon from the ground. Since she weighed less than two times the corpse, she was struggling.

Reed rolled his eyes when she only managed to lift it into the corner of the grave, but stopped her.

"That's fine." He said, before tossing Jeremiah on the ground in front of her. "Now put the demon on top of Jeremiah"

Hayley's eyebrows furrowed, but she did as she was told and slowly crawled out of the grave. How she'd accomplished that, being as small as she was, Reed didn't know.

After a second, Reed tilted his head up and sniffed the air.

There was definitely a hint of vampire, but since the bloodsuckers never decompose he didn't have to worry about the scent growing much stronger. Besides, the rotting demon corpse smell definitely overpowered anything else. And with the soil on top, it would take a very determined scout to find Jeremiah's body.

With that in mind, Reed grabbed the shovel and wiped the leftover blood on his shirt- he wouldn't want to get Jeremiah's blood all over the dirt, that would be a dead giveaway- before starting the tiring task of burying the two corpses.

The human would owe him big time for this. If no one went sniffing around the graves, they would be safe.

"Do you think this is going to work?" Hayley asked. Rather than give her a reply, Reed decided to tune her out. Unfortunately, it didn't stop the girl's incessant chattering.

_Blah, Blah, Blah_

Did all girls talk this much?

Finally, unable to take it any longer, Reed turned furious red eyes on her.

"Hayley" He said in an icy voice "Shu_t_ UP"

"But all I'm saying is-"

Suddenly, without warning, before Reed even knew what he was doing, Reed crushed his lips to hers. Locking them in a passionate kiss. Confused, and angry, Reed broke the kiss just as quickly.

"Shut up" He growled, before going back to his shoveling, his thoughts darkening as the seconds passed.

Where the fuck had that come from? A kiss?

He growled to himself before shoveling more viciously.

Hayley didn't say another word for the entire night.

* * *

Reed reclined lucidly against the cave walls of his "home". Hayley had left hours ago, leaving him with nothing to do except for stare at the stone walls around him. Feeling restless, he threw on a black coat and walked into town.

Usually, there wasn't much going on, and he'd have to go into the city to feed; but tonight, he was desperate. Desperate and starving.

He spotted a pretty little brunette wandering alone into an empty alley and smiled at his luck. It seemed things were turning around yet.

Silently, he stalked the girl until she came to a badly lit portion of the alley. Then, he struck. Like lightening, his arms shot out and wrapped around her waist, he roughly threw the girl against the wall- satisfied by the pained cry that left her throat, and quickly set to work on her.

Within a few minutes, the girl was pale and lying motionless on the alley floor; completely devoid of life. No, that life was now swirling inside Reed's veins. He flashed a wicked grin at nothing in particular, glad to finally have his mind off of Hayley. That human confused him too much to be around for more than a few hours at a time. Reed wasn't sure if he wanted to mutilate her, or make her his forever. At that thought, a slow, pleased smile replaced the grin. He did already posses her soul, there's not much else that can make a person yours forever like holding ones soul.

Becoming bored with his surroundings, Reed adjusted his shirt, smoothing it out with his fingers, and glancing at his victim for the first time since he'd followed her in to the alley.

What he saw made the color drain from his face- not that there was much there to begin with- and his heart pound in his chest.

It couldn't be.

The human was the spitting image of Hayley, right down to the spindly body and gaunt, sad, eyes.

Still staring, Reed forced himself to blink. When he looked again, the dead human was most definitely not Hayley. His eyes had been playing tricks on him. Taking a shaky breath, Reed turned and left the alley. As soon as he was back on the street, the scent hit him like a brick wall. A vampire. And a very familiar vampire if he wasn't mistaken.

Reed followed the scent to the last place he wanted to be right now. Hayley's house.

And sure enough, swinging carelessly on the porch swing was a vampire he had come to know very well.

He was pale, with dark hair and icy blue eyes. His name was Caden, and he was Jeremiah's brother.

* * *

_**Hayley's POV**_

I woke up to the sounds of barely raised voices outside my window. Since my room was on the second floor, I assumed that the squabble was going on in my front yard. My eyes shot open when I recognized one of the voices to be Reed's, and my fear that we had been found out surged up; leaving me frozen in place. Then came the other feelings. Reed had kissed me tonight. And I knew that it had only been to shut me up, but every time I thought about it, my lips began to buzz as if his lips were still there, and I would blush before I could stop myself. Even now, sensing him outside, I felt my breathing hitch and my heart pound. After a few seconds of taking calming breaths, I slipped on my tweety-bird slippers and matching yellow silk robe, before sneaking downstairs.

I could see Reed's hair reflecting off the porch light as I made my way to the front door. As I came closer, I noticed the person Reed was arguing with. He looked exactly like Jeremiah, only even more handsome.

I was left with two theories. One, we hadn't actually killed Jeremiah, and now he was back to bother Reed for more Panacea. Two, somehow, like the demon, Jeremiah had come back from the undead to exact his revenge on us from beyond the grave.

I sprinted the last few steps to the door and thrust it open, wrapping my fingers around Reed's sleeve, before yanking him inside and slamming the door behind him- then bolting the door, locking it, and blocking it with the recliner chair in the living room.

The entire time, Reed watched me with critical, slightly amused, glowing red eyes.

When the recliner was finally in a place that I believed would keep any vampire intruders from breaking through the door, I took a deep breath and wiped a bead of sweat from my forehead.

"Are you done?" Reed asked, caustically, a slight smile on his lips.

"Although, I must admit, it was quite a display of power for a girl as small as yourself" came a new voice.

My eyes followed the voice to see Jeremiah standing on the stairs. Although, now that he was closer, I realized it wasn't Jeremiah, just a Jeremiah look-a-like.

But how the hell did he get in here?

As if reading my mind, the vampire gave me a slow smile, inclining his head upstairs.

"You left your window open" He explained softly "Nice room by the way"

"Who are you?" I asked unsurely "And why are you in my house?"

"He's, uh, Caden. Jeremiah's brother" Reed said quietly as I edged closer to him.

"And I'm in your house, because you kind of interrupted the conversation I was having with your friend here, outside" Caden added.

I nodded my head slowly, taking another step towards Reed. He seemed to be taking this whole development in stride. Maybe Caden wasn't an enemy. Although, we- I killed his brother, so I wasn't going to take any chances.

When I was close enough to Reed that I hoped Caden wouldn't hear, I leaned up to whisper at him.

"There's a shovel in the garage. Do you want me to get it?"

* * *

**_A/N: Don't forget to Review!_**


	7. Situations

_**A/N: Hello my lovelies. It's not the next day, like AphexTex had hoped...but it's close! I'm so super excited for this story, so i couldn't wait any longer to get this chapter out to you guys.  
I hope you like it! So, as always- Read, Enjoy, Review- in that order! lol**_

**_Much love,_**

**_- Swan's Catastrophe_**

_**

* * *

**_

_**Chapter 7: Situations**_

_Darling, what is going on?_

_Honestly, that never happened_

_Lying is your favorite passion_

_Leave me, go where you belong_

_Higher heels and lipstick napkins_

_Dying is your latest fashion_

_- Situations, Escape The Fate_

* * *

Reed cracked a smile, before covering his laughter with a fit of coughs. Caden cracked a smile of his own, so I was guessing that he knew, and wasn't too upset about the fact that I murdered his brother. Odd.

"That, won't be necessary" Reed said, chuckling again.

"Nope" Caden agreed "Besides, I'm fine with staking or shooting- but a shovel would be inappropriate for a man of my position"

"What position's that?" I asked as I led them both into the living room. If we're going to have an uncomfortable conversation, our asses might as well be nice and comfy while they still can be.

I curled up in the corner of the couch, leaving room for Reed since Caden had stretched out on the opposite sofa. Reed surprised me though, when he sat directly next to me. So close that his thigh brushed against mine. His red eyes flicked to my face, gauging for a reaction, and I quickly looked down; letting my hair create a barrier between us so that he wouldn't see my blush.

"I would be the new sheriff of this area" Caden said in reply to my earlier question. My head whipped up to stare at him, blush forgotten.

"I thought your dad was the sheriff" I frowned.

"He was the sheriff. Until a tragic accident that killed both he and my brother, leaving me in charge."

At my completely confused look, Reed sighed and turned to me in a hushed voice.

"He's saying that he'll keep our secret and protect us by covering up Jeremiah's death as an accident. But, I wouldn't doubt he wants something in return" Reed said softly.

"Exactly" Caden nodded, hearing everything Reed had said "And I do want something in return. But after I have it, you'll never hear from me again"

"What do you want?" I asked, ignoring Reed's smoldering glare. Apparently, he wasn't in the mood to negotiate.

Caden raised an eyebrow- I took it that he wasn't used to human boldness- and continued.

"I know how your "master" has been selling Panacea to my brother and several other vampires-"

"I'm not going to stop, if that's what you're getting at" Reed growled

"It's not" Caden said coldly "You will continue what you're doing, and I will send a higher client base your way. What I want you to do, is add this to the drug" Caden held up a glowing yellow vial.

"What is it?" I asked curiously.

"It's an enhancer" Reed replied before Caden got the chance "It heightens the senses of a vampire, like touch and taste, and smell- while dulling the nerves. With it, they'd be able to hunt without having to worry about getting hurt. The enhancer blocks out pain"

Reed continued on "What I don't understand is why you need it?" He questioned, resting narrowed red eyes on Caden.

The vampire sighed, slouching against the sofa.

"This area is on the brink of war with the werewolves. If every warrior were to take this enhancer mixed with Panacea, they'd be far more likely to defend their territory as opposed to fleeing because of a few werewolf"

"So you want me to sell a drug that is going to start a war?"

"Well, when you put it like that-"

"It sounds just as bad as the way you put it" I interrupted boredly. Yawning quietly to myself, I stood up and walked towards the staircase.

"Where are you going?" Caden asked.

"To bed" I replied insolently "If you haven't noticed, I'm still in high school and it's a school night. Besides, I don't make the decisions in this…_partnership_. It didn't end so well the last time I decided to do something- well, it didn't end well for Jeremiah. So, from this point on, I'm just gonna do what Reed says"

"Not like you have a choice anyway!" Reed called after me as I climbed the stairs.

I smirked, laughing silently to myself before hopping into bed beside my cat.

I woke up two hours later and could still hear Reed and Caden murmuring to each other- I blankly wondered if all supernaturals were nocturnal, before I drifted back to sleep.

* * *

I woke up in the morning to the sound of clattering dishes. My first thoughts were- undead demon, is blowing stuff up with its eyes and raiding my refrigerator and expensive glassware. Quickly, I got out of bed, and rushed to my softball bat in the corner; ignoring the more rational part of my mind screaming _why would demons be raiding the glassware in your kitchen?_

Why indeed.

Best to investigate.

Trying to be as quiet as possible- which never really worked out for me- I crept down the stairs, past the living room, and into the kitchen; bat at the ready.

There, in my kitchen, was someone dressed all in black, huddled over the counter with their back to me.

How the hell are all these people getting into my house? We really needed better security.

My eyes scanned the person again and I tried to guess why on earth he was here. Was he an assassin? Ooh, maybe like a ninja assassin or something. I glanced at the bat in my hands unsurely. I don't think a softball bat will hold up too well against a ninja assassin. Can't they cut through shit like that?

Shrugging, and taking my chances, I raised the bat high over my head and swung- letting out a nervous war cry.

The bat connected, with a strong, pale hand. Damn, the fiend blocked it. Now I was left unarmed.

A small chuckle tore me from my thoughts and I looked up at Reed. He was still gripping the blunt side of the bat, a small grin on his face.

"Do you normally attack your guests from behind with blunt objects?" Reed asked, tearing the bat from my grip and tossing it on the floor beside me. I blinked several times, wondering if I could use the excuse of being half-asleep as an explanation for my stupidity.

"Not the ones who I invite over" I muttered.

Reed's grin widened and he motioned towards the breakfast nook table.

"Don't get mad, I made breakfast" He defended. I glanced at the table and tried to hide the fact that my mouth had started to water just looking at it.

Belgian waffles, strawberry syrup, scrambled eggs, orange juice, cinnamon toast, and fruit on the side.

I hadn't had a breakfast like that since before my mom got sick. Snapping out of my hunger trance, my eyes flicked warily to Reed.

"What's the catch?" I asked skeptically.

Reed rolled his eyes, groaning softly "Why must people always assume there's a catch when someone else does something nice for them?"

At that, I laughed aloud. "This? Coming from you? The person who tricked me into giving up my soul in return for you keeping my mother alive? Are you serious?"

Reed narrowed his eyes, hand coming to stroke his chin. After a few seconds of thought, his eyes met mine.

"Touché" He conceded, "But seriously, no catch. Just breakfast- and a talk"

"Uh-oh" I grumbled, sitting down at the table and slapping two waffles on my plate.

"What?"

I sighed "Don't you know anything at all? Whenever someone says "we need to talk" It's _always_ bad news"

Reed cocked his head to the side, an action that made him look feral and just plain scary as shit. "Touché again" He replied.

I grinned, pouring mass amounts of strawberry syrup onto my waffles.

"So, what are we talking about?" I asked, shoving mouthfuls of strawberry syrup bathed waffle into my mouth.

"Caden" Reed said simply. I nodded that I understood- too busy chewing to reply- and motioned for him to continue.

"It would seem that he has left us no choice but to do as he says- if we don't, and decide to run, he'll report us to the clave and blame us for the death of Jeremiah and his father"

"But we didn't kill his father" I argued. With a full mouth, it sounded more like: buhweninnitkillhishfacha

Another smile. I had gotten Reed to smile, again. I think this was the most the boy had smiled in all his life.

Victory.

"I know that." Reed assured me "Caden killed his father. But that wouldn't keep him from blaming **us** for it if we ran"

I shrugged, trying to ignore the fact that Reed had just told me that Caden killed his own father. What kind of sick fuck does that?

"I wouldn't be able to run anyway. I have to stay here for my mom" I said, gulping down a large sip of orange juice.

"That's what I told him" Reed nodded. "Now, all that has to be decided, is who does what"

I raised my eyebrows in question, and Reed began to elaborate.

"Since we are going to have a larger client base now, we need a larger amount of the product. It's all about supply and demand, sparky. So one of us will have to be out, creating a larger supply- while the other, will be back at the graveyard selling. But, since you have completely no idea about anything, and would probably end up becoming shovel happy with my clients- we're going to have to work together. We'll collect the Panacea on Tuesdays and Thursdays and sell on all the other days"

I raised my hands in confusion, snickering softly "What the hell?" I laughed "You just said we'd decide who does what, and then just said that we're going to do them both together"

"Well, yeah, I'm in charge. I can do that" Reed smirked. I rolled my eyes, leaning back in my chair.

"What's today?" I asked

"Saturday, why?"

"Just asking" I replied, remembering what I would usually be doing on Saturdays.

Contrary to popular belief, I used to have a life. I used to do things that didn't involve going to visit my mother's empty grave in the middle of the night. I used to be _popular_.

I was on the softball team, tennis team, I volunteered at the animal shelter, and the retirement home- I used to have a _boyfriend_.

All of that changed when my mom got sick.

I quit everything, stopped talking to people, and holed myself up in my house. Saturdays, would be the day that I would see Mrs. Herman at the retirement home. We would talk, have some tea, and play cards. Her husband had died in the Vietnam War- she had no children, no relatives. I was the only interaction she received outside of the home, and I abandoned her.

I felt the guilt stab at me like a knife, and slowly pushed my plate away. Not hungry anymore.

God, I was an awful, selfish person.

Not anymore.

I shot out of my seat and made my way for the stairs.

"Where are you going?" Reed called.

"To the retirement home, you're coming with me. Make yourself look human-like" I called back, rushing up the stairs.

"What the fu-"

"Just make yourself look human! You'll scare the old people otherwise!" I shouted back before running into my bedroom and getting ready to see Mrs. Herman. I'd had enough of being the creepy loner girl who didn't talk to anyone. I was going to do stuff again. Especially if it annoyed Reed. That satisfaction alone would be too much to pass up. This was going to be fun. I had a good feeling about this.

I'm Hayley Kindler, and I have **no** idea what I'm getting myself into


	8. Blindsided

_**A/N: Oh boy, are you guys in for a treat starting this chapter! You see, I had an idea, that I would make this story...much more sexy than any of my other ones. But i'm a little chicken shit when it comes to writing sexy scenes, and it just comes off as cheesy, and not attractive at all. So, beacause of my disability with this, xxdarknessxfallsxx has very generously donated her time to write up the scenes for me! All the credit for the sexiness goes to her on this one, guys. Like seriously, I was amazed at the talent that this girl has. If you haven't read her fics yet, don't waste any more time! And, now that i've stalled long enough, I give you your long awaited chapter.**_

**_Like always,_**

**_Read, Enjoy, Review,  
and thanks again xxdarknessxfallsxx,  
like I already said, you rock!_**

**_- Swan's Catastrophe_**

_**

* * *

**_

_**C**__**hapter 8: Blindsided**_

_Would you really rush out for me now?_

Taught line... down to the shoreline.

_The end of a blood line... the moon is a cold light_

There's a pull to the flow, My feet melt the snow

For the irony, I'd rather know, 'Cause blinded

_I Was Blindsided_

_- Blindsided, Bon Iver_

* * *

"Will you hurry up," I snapped, glancing back at Reed as he took his sweet time strolling along the sidewalk. He looked up at me, and I couldn't help the small smirk that made its way onto my face. He looked like a _very_ weird human. He used what he called a "glamour" to make himself look normal, but I'm not entirely sure Reed knows what normal is. His hair was now a deep, crimson red, he wore all black, and he hadn't even bothered to change his eye color. Basically, he looked like some freaky, goth, vampire wannabe, he also looked devilishly handsome…in the "I'll rip out your fucking ribcage if you even look at me wrong" kind of way. Still, it was sexy.

"Shut up" He snapped back.

I rolled my eyes, sighing deeply, as I held the door open for him. Giving me one last grudging look as he brushed past, I followed Reed into the retirement home.

I almost grinned at him as he stared at the lobby, looking completely confused. Our town's retirement home wasn't like most other ones. It was bright, and airy, and warm, and all together- awesome.

"This is the retirement home?" He asked disbelievingly. I smiled as I made my way to the woman sitting at the front desk.

Her eyes widened when she saw me coming, and a bright smile lit up her face.

"Hayley Kindler, my oh my, it's been a long time," said Thalia, the receptionist.

I grinned at her "Hey Thalia," I greeted, coming to rest my elbows on the counter dividing the two of us "I was wondering if Mrs. Herman was up for any visitors?"

The smile was wiped clean from Thalia's face, and her eyes filled with an emotion I couldn't quite put my finger on.

"Um no," Thalia frowned, "I don't think that will be possible."

I gave Thalia a questioning look, shifting my weight anxiously "Okay, why not?"

The receptionist gave a sad sigh, leaning forward "Mrs. Herman past away a few months ago, sweetie," she said softly.

I felt like I had just been punched in the gut, at the same time, I felt like a huge weight had settled over me; blurring my vision. After a few seconds, I realized that my blurred vision was the result of tears.

"She's…dead?" I asked, voice cracking. Thalia's face became sympathetic and she grasped my hand supportively.

"We tried to get a hold of you, hon, but when we called, all of the phones had been turned off."

I brought a shaking hand to my mouth, to muffle the embarrassing sounds I made when I cried, and took a step back.

"She did leave something for you though," Thalia said after a few quiet seconds. She began rummaging through one of the drawers at her desk, before finding what she was looking for. She handed me a small white box, and I took it with shaking hands.

After taking a few seconds to calm myself down, I took a deep breath, and lifted the lid of the box.

Nestled against velvet covered cushions was an elaborate, intricately carved, golden locket.

Immediately, I shut the box up again. That locket was the last thing Mrs. Herman had of her husband. She had told me the story of it many times. He had given it to her the day he was shipped off to Vietnam. It was the most prized possession that Mrs. Herman had owned, and she had given it to me- a girl who went months before knowing that she had even passed away.

I fisted my hair, wiping at my eyes, as I nodded at Thalia.

"Thank you," I said, before hurrying for the exit.

Reed, who'd been chatting idly with an old man up until this point, noticed my quick exit and rushed after me.

"Hayley," he called after me. I didn't slow my pace, the last thing I needed right now was him mocking me over my "amusing little human emotions."

Unfortunately for me, the boy appeared directly in front of me, and I nearly collided into him.

He stared at me, a small frown appearing on his face as I avoided his gaze.

"She's dead," I told him, trying to sound like I hadn't been crying, and failing miserably. "She died months ago, and I didn't even know."

Still frowning, Reed brushed brunette locks of hair from my face. "Everyone dies," he sighed. My eyes met his, searching for some sort of amusement in their red depths. I found none. He was actually _trying_ to be nice. I smiled sheepishly at his attempt, and continued walking towards home.

"What's in the box?" Reed asked curiously, adjusting his pace so that he was walking beside me. I tossed it at him, not bothering to glance over for his reaction.

"Interesting…" was all that he said.

When we finally got back to my house, I kind of just wandered around in a daze, cleaning things, while Reed watched with critical eyes that grew more disturbed by the passing seconds.

Finally, unable to take it anymore, he appeared in front of me and wrapped his hands around my arms before shaking me with a little more force than necessary.

"Will you just spit it out already?" he demanded. "Where are the water works? The annoying ramblings of a devastated teen? Where's the Hayley Kindler I've come to know and be extremely annoyed by?"

I stared at him blankly, eyes narrowing at the last bit of his little speech. "I'm not going to be normal Hayley Kindler anymore, because apparently, she trades her soul to albino boys, sells drugs to vampires, and let's people that she cares about-die."

Reed rolled his eyes skyward, his tongue flicking out to trail over his bottom lip.

"You are being ridiculous," he said simply.

I suddenly exploded. "Yeah, well I'd rather be ridiculous than a heartless bastard who doesn't care about anyone but himself!" Reed's red eyes darkened and I heard the unmistakable sound of a growl rising from deep in his throat. He took a threatening step towards me, herding me into a corner.

"Tread carefully little girl, I'm not in the mood to fight with you," he said icily. For some reason, this only added fuel to my rage.

"That's right," I spat, "'cause it only matters what _you're_ in the mood for, what _you_ care about. No one else really matters to you."

I was slammed against the wall with so much force, I was left breathless. Reed's red eyes were burning fiery holes through mine and he growled low and deep.

It sent the first prickling of fear trailing up my spine.

"Yeah, well if _you _care about anything at all besides _yourself_, you will shut your fucking mouth now," Reed fumed. "I'm sick and tired of your god damn antics. So, an old lady died, old people die every fucking day- it's what they do! And I don't appreciate you taking your anger toward yourself for not being there for her out on me. The way I see it, you have two choices. You can either get over yourself, and we can both move on like none of this ever happened. Or, you can continue attacking me, and I'll begin attacking you- only, I won't be attacking you verbally."

I didn't miss the threat, and that little warning deflated me completely. I sagged against the wall, giving a sigh of relief when Reed released his hold on my arms. I glanced down at them to see angry red fingerprints. Yep, that's definitely going to bruise. I looked back up at Reed to glare at his back.

He was turned away, and I could make out all of the defined lines of his toned back.

"I hate you," I spat.

Glancing, over his shoulder, Reed gave me a knowing- and very alluring- smirk.

"No you don't," he said smugly. "The person you really hate is yourself."

Without thinking, which seemed to be something I do (or don't do) often lately, I crossed the room to stand in front of him, and delivered a harsh slap across the face with everything I had.

I realized the mistake I made way too late. My eyes widened into saucers as Reed turned his head slowly to glare at me. Without hesitation, I turned and ran in the opposite direction, screaming the entire time.

I didn't even make two steps before I was slammed against the wall, yet again. Only this time, it was my front side that got the full force of the blow. In the same instant, Reed pinned me between the wall and his own body, fisting a hand through my hair and yanking back roughly, forcing my neck to arch painfully against his shoulder.

"You stupid little girl," Reed hissed. "_That_ was a mistake."

He yanked against my hair again, and a small cry was torn from my lips. Somehow, the pain made me even more aware of my surroundings, and the danger I was in.

Reed's hard body was pressed against mine. He was a tall guy with broad shoulders, so his entire being practically enveloped mine. And I could _feel_ the dark energy rolling off of him. He was pissed, very pissed. I struggled against him, my butt brushing against his thigh, and was subdued as his grip on my hair tightened even more tortuously, and he smothered me harder against the wall.

As Reed did all of this, I still could not take my mind off one thing: there was a certain growing item pressing against my inner thighs. Yes, Reed was pissed, but he was also surprisingly, and unmistakably, aroused.

As soon as I came to terms with this startling new piece of information, Reed flipped me around, pushing my back against the wall with dizzying speed and bruising force. For a long time, we just stared at each other. Me, wide-eyed and frightened out of my mind. Him, angry and threatening and violent.

Just when I thought that the tension couldn't get any worse, I felt Reed's lips against mine. This kiss wasn't gentle. Reed was never gentle, even in his good moods, but somehow I didn't mind. I let him take control, and actually kissed him back, unable to help myself.

Kissing him was surreal. His lips were firm and unstoppable in their attack, while mine remained plaint and submissive. I guess it explained our relationship well enough.

Demanding my full attention, Reed molded his lips over mine even more firmly, denying me the right to break away for air. Without warning, his hands lifted me up and wrapped my legs around his waist as he pressed me further against the wall, and himself. The entire time, his lips never left mine. They continued their assault as his tongue invaded my mouth. I moaned into him and his arousal became more defined from where it pressed against my inner thigh. I wouldn't be able to honestly say that the feeling wasn't enjoyable; in fact, I felt exhilarated by every second of it. His fingers snaking through my hair and tugging roughly only fed into my own passions, and I moaned deeper. This kiss was similar, yet so much more intense than the one he surprised me with before in the graveyard. His domination only tempted me further from the line of morality.

The strangeness of the entire situation only made my emotions swell. Reed was a being that wasn't human yet wouldn't reveal himself, who was also my 'boss' who claimed to own my soul in a contract I signed for my mother's life. In the past forty-eight hours he'd killed an undead demon right in front of me, and I'd murdered a vampire who was about to hurt him.

_Somehow, _I was alright with all of this.

And I was alright with the situation at hand, or more precisely, tongue. One yank too roughly on my hair bent my neck backward. My head banged the wall behind me but I quickly forgot the shock as Reed's hot lips attached to my neck and sent an electric volt to my core. I cried out in pain and pleasure as his assault with his mouth didn't ease just because he conquered new skin. The delicate area below my chin would be just as bruised as the rest of me as his teeth worked over every sensitive inch of flesh.

The things I felt in response to his mouth were enough to make me produce noises I didn't know I was capable of. I guessed this was what people meant when they said they were 'neck people,' and I was powerless to stop him, even if I'd remotely wanted to.

Reed's hips rolled against mine as he attempted to relieve some of the pressure building within himself, his fierce arousal grounded into my center and made heat rush both to my face and to regions of the lower kind. It was so stimulating, I trembled into a moan that drew out of my throat slowly and deeply, similar to the one Reed made earlier.

As I made this hungry noise, the male snapped his head up in full attention.

Reed's deep red eyes stared straight into mine, and it seemed that he then registered_ who_ I was again. His grip eased from my hair and his body allowed me enough room so my toes could touch the floor again, but his eyes never shifted. They never once blinked.

A moment ago, he'd cared about only dominating.

Now, he specifically wanted to dominate_ me_.

My heart pounded within its cage of ribs during the break between us. He, again, stopped this limbo by grabbing my shoulders and forcing me away from the wall. "I own you. Never forget that." His voice was a deeper octave than his normal tone, and his eyes… His eyes burned so darkly it left me feeling as if I were two-dimensional. I couldn't look away even though it was all I wanted to do. Those bloody eyes under that dark hair; perhaps this look was even more entrapping than his normal albino features. My brain was shut down at this point, however, as I made my slow decent to the floor in response to his silent commands and shoving. As I sank to lay flat on the ground, his body followed perfectly so we were never separated by more than a few inches. I didn't know if I breathed, but my heart was still beating like a thunderous drum.

I felt scared, yet stimulated. He was terrifying, yet enticing as he hovered over me. He engulfed me in the aura of darkness around him that was tinted with forbidden lust.

As my back adjusted to the hard ground, his motions were slow but deliberate. My hands were caught together by one of his over my head, as his other hand yanked at my bottoms.

No, I wasn't breathing.

And he still didn't blink or look elsewhere than straight into my soul, which he owned.

My brain almost came back to me the longer I concentrated on the red of his eyes, but then something eased the pressure that had built between my legs. A strong set of fingers pressed directly over my naked, heated core. I finally broke the eye contact and closed my eyes, then opened my mouth, not knowing what sort of reaction noise I would create.

His hand binding my arms together came over my mouth to silence me.

"Not a word," he warned in his deeper voice. His quest of invasion wasn't over, I realized. His domination wasn't supposed to end with separation from the wall. His eyes told every intention of going all the way, and his fingers suddenly jerked over a part of me that sent a sensational lightning up my spine.

My eyes opened wide and found his again, my noises were muffled under his hand. My freed arms flew straight to his chest.

I could only express one word in response to the overwhelming realization that he was doing things no one ever had before.

'_No.'_

My eyes screamed the word loud and clear. My arms pushed against his chest, my legs snapped closed around his fingers.

'_Please, no!'_

The lower hand fought to open my legs again against my will. All of my arousal disappeared as I cried out underneath his hand that was now crushing my jaw. My vision blurred as tears welled and slid hot down my cheeks and soaked into my hair sprayed underneath the two of us. My fingers, instead of fighting the threat over me, gripped his shirt tight as my body curled into itself and I began to sob.

Reed moved his hand from gagging my mouth, and I took the privilege of choking on my tears and crying with everything I had chained up inside me.

When the worst of the fit was over, I found myself sitting upright in the same spot on the floor, my hands still hinged on Reed's shirt as he cradled me under his arm, and my lower-half still exposed.

"Is this good enough for you?" I spat out against his shoulder. "Is this the water works and the annoying ramblings you were looking for?"

As I accused him, not caring about the consequences from a few moments before, Reed pulled my bottoms back up and I could consider myself proper again. If only.

I wiped my snot and tears with my shirt after I pushed myself away and stumbled into a standing position.

"Are you fucking happy now?"

I'm Hayley Kindler. And this is not how I expecting my day to go.


	9. Love Me Dead

_**A/N: Enjoy this one guys :D  
We'll have a new installment up for ya, soon!  
Like always; Read, Enjoy, Review,**_

**_- Swan's Catastrophe_**

_**

* * *

**_

_**Chapter 9: Love Me Dead**_

You suck so passionately,  
You're a parasitic, psycho, filthy creature  
finger-bangin' my heart  
You call me up drunk  
Does the fun ever start?  
You're hideous and sexy!

_- Love Me Dead, Ludo  
_

* * *

Reed stared at me coolly, his eyes betraying nothing as I tried to contain my tears.

"Get out," I demanded. "Get out now."

Reed scoffed, taking a step towards me; I flinched away. "Who are you, to be giving me orders? Last I checked, I'm the one holding all the cards, sparky."

My eyes narrowed into thin slits and I felt myself inches away from violence.

"_Do not call me, sparky,_" I spat slowly, emphasizing every word.

Reed raised an eyebrow, his features returning to their normal albino appearance simultaneously.

"Really, you want to start this again?" he asked, sounding bored. "Because you picking fights worked out so well the first time…"

My face tightened and I shook my head, giving up. "Just get out," I said, with less feeling than the last time. It was becoming increasingly clear that Reed would do whatever the fuck he wanted, even if it meant violating someone else to get whatever it was that he was after.

"I was planning on it," Reed said curtly. "But you'll be coming with me."

I cast him a wary glance, as he stared- no, _leered_ at me. "What are you talking about?" I asked.

"Today's a supply day," he said simply. For whatever reason, I found that _now_ was the time to avert his gaze. I stood there, fuming, for several long seconds before taking a deep breath. It did nothing to help with my anger. I just wished he would leave. Could he not gather Panacea by himself? But at the same time, when Reed just stood there, staring at me with lack of any emotion whatsoever, I felt a small part of me falter. If he had just left without making a fuss, it would just mean that he obeyed my wishes because he was guilty of something. That he knew he had taken advantage of me, and that I was only a victim. That none of it had been me** actually wanting it,**** which wasn't true****. **If he stayed, like he was doing now, it would mean that I was going completely insane for being attracted in a sexual way to a man that tricked me out of my soul, and never ceased to remind me that he could end both my mother's and my life as quickly as he could save them.

I was sure of only one thing: I didn't want to have to go to yet another isolated place with this boy. Not after I'd just gotten a full demonstration of just how much power he had over me.

"Fine," I said icily. "Lead the way, _master._" I smirked to myself at managing to make the word 'master' sound insolent and derogatory.

The smirk was wiped clean off my face when Reed's red eyes met mine, containing a large amount of mischief.

"Don't give me any ideas, sparky," he said a few octaves lower than his usual voice "If that's what you're into…"

I'm pretty sure I started twitching. Reed surprised me however, and instead of giving a pleased chuckle, he remained uncharacteristically calm and aloof. I eyed him warily, as I made my way towards the front door- grabbing my coat on the way. Reed just followed without a word.

I took in a deep whiff of the crisp, autumn air and glanced over to see Reed staring at me intently. Again, I flinched, a small frown settling onto my features, and I let him lead me towards the graveyard.

One thing was for sure. Even if today hadn't been how I'd planned, it'd certainly turned out to be interesting.

* * *

_**Reed's POV**_

Reed was not in a good mood. Not that good moods occurred often for him, but this was different. He could feel a dark cloud settling over him every time he even glanced in _her_ direction. His feelings grew darker each time she would flinch, or cast him a hurt, accusing look when she thought he wasn't looking. Even now, as she was sucking purple and gold Panacea from a demon corpse, he could see the tense set of her muscles- as if expecting him to attack at any second. It sent a painful twisting in his gut. He felt… guilty.

And not just guilty, he felt _horrible_. Who the hell was she to make him feel such senseless emotions? Again, he was torn between opposing thoughts. One part of him wanted to end her right then and there, and the other part of him wanted to prove himself to her- to make her believe that he would never do anything against her will.

_Because you've done such a great job at proving yourself so far…_

Reed growled aloud, this entire situation was shit. Of course, the one day that he had managed to find the Panacea jackpot was the day that he was forced to feel guilt over hurting a _human_ of all people.

Looking at her and her brunette hair wild and windblown as she moved through corpses, the only ease he felt came from the blinding aura of life that had returned around her. After the fuck-tastic trip to the retirement home, her aura had actually dwindled down to the point he didn't dare suck a bit of life from her like he'd previously been doing. However, her vivacity returned with her hurt and anger towards him after what he did… And _damn_, she was a _virgin_. He could understand why his feelings of redemption had suddenly decided to arise. She was innocent, pure. He wouldn't taint that; not without her permission, anyway. As he came to terms with this part of himself, Reed felt his anger begin to fade. Exhaling a deep sigh, Reed worked his way around the demon corpses in search of a likely candidate who may or may not be keeping purple and glowing gold within the thick skulls of theirs.

"Why are they all here?" Hayley asked suddenly, wrinkling her nose at a particularly mutilated corpse. She referred to the demon dumpsite they were currently scavenging through. Reed contemplated ignoring her, but remembering that he was still in the doghouse, he concluded it would be best to at least be a bit less of an ass.

"The supernatural have no other place to put them. Demon numbers dwindle every day, most of them are murdered by other races of creatures. Think of it like the mass genocide of Jews back in the 1940s," Reed said, moving corpses out of his way to get to one hidden beneath the rest of them.

"But why?"

Reed's red eyes snapped up to hers and he raised a pale eyebrow.

"Why do humans torture prisoners of war, or bomb other nations, or murder their own children. Face it, Hayley, it's a world of savages. It doesn't matter if you're human or inhuman, we're all looking out for number one- and that's ourselves."

"So what I'm getting from that little rant is that the other supernatural races are threatened by demons, so they're exterminating them?" Hayley inquired.

Reed pursed his lips, eyebrows furrowing. She got _that_ from a speech about human savagery? He was getting too transparent; at least, he was, whenever she was around.

"Pretty much," he sighed, wincing when a slippery corpse covered in blood rolled against his legs. As easy as it was to just concentrate on using some power to clean it up, he had a strong diversion of getting demon blood on his hands. As if it wasn't bad enough that he prowled the dumpsite at night with a syringe in one hand, and a cigarette (on any night that Hayley wasn't with him) in the other, but he always seemed to get some of their blood on his person at least one time during the duration that he scoured for Panacea. His occupation wasn't pleasant. But it kept him safe from the people that might have it out for him, and it paid well, so he did what he could.

After several minutes more of searching for more liquid life and coming up with nothing, Reed decided it was time to call it a night.

He transported himself and Hayley back into the workroom, unable to even disguise the small hint of delight that he felt when she glanced quickly around herself, startled. Without a word, Reed took the vials of Panacea from Hayley; careful not to make any too quick movements for fear that she would jerk and drop them all. _That_ would not be good.

When he was done putting all of the materials away, he turned back to Hayley, leaning against the counter opposite hers, and he waited.

As he suspected, it came.

He had been waiting for it all night, but she had stalled up until now to confront him. He waited, and braced himself for the blows. She raised her dark eyes to meet his slowly, a small blush playing at her cheeks, before visibly tensing.

Surprisingly, it didn't bother him. He would prove it to her one way or another. At least, he repeated that to himself, even when she started mouthing off.

* * *

_**Hayley's POV**_

"Attempting to go all the way this time?" I inquired bitterly, crossing my arms and leaning back so I could stare at his face. And only the face. Every time I looked into his eyes, things got weird. Reed sighed tiredly, his tongue flicking out to skim over his lower lip before disappearing back into his mouth. I couldn't help the feelings that that one little action stirred. Only a couple of hours ago, he'd been using that tongue on _me_. I shuddered, forcing the thoughts from my mind, and decided to distract myself by targeting him.

"This time you could always tie me up and gag me, and then there'd be more freedom to use your hands," I pushed, trying to see just how far I could take this. Reed seemed to be ignoring me, and if I didn't know any better, I'd say that he was. But there were the subtle little hints. When he ignores me, he stares off into oblivion, or at his shoelaces and he looks completely at ease and relaxed. Right now, Reed was glaring at the far corner of the room- he wasn't zoning out, and I could see the taut, tense lines of his muscles underneath his shirt.

He was holding himself back. But why?

Nothing I said had stopped him before.

"Just know this," I warned. "If you try something like that again, I'll kill you. And you and I both know I'm more than capable of doing it."

That got a reaction out of him alright. Reed was not a guy who took lightly to threats.

His red eyes changed to the familiar darkness I'd seen in them before. These blood-colored orbs locked in on me as his body tensed like a lion about to attack its prey. I flinched away, knowing well what was going to happen to me because I'd stepped so far out of line- again. My bruises were still healing from that first ordeal.

I heard the small brush of fabric as he crossed the distance between us.

My body shrank as I anticipated the roughness and pain…

Except instead, Reed's fingers flirted lightly along my skin, tracing the tips from my wrist up to my shoulders. The touch was gentle enough to feel ticklish, and the words 'gentle' and 'Reed' did not ever go together, which was why instead of relaxing under his hands, I nearly jumped out of my body.

He always needed to have the upper-hand; it was simply how he got off.

Instead of going with the strong, and almost abusive, domination from before, he caught me completely off-guard by barely making contact with my skin, and yet the reaction was the same as earlier. I was so overwhelmed by his proximity that my hearted pounded and I didn't breathe, just like the last encounter.

I felt his breath close against my ear, but his touch disappeared.

Momentarily, anyway.

The feathery finger tips darted up my shirt; I panicked and pinned my arms to my sides, catching his hands right at the bottom of my rib cage. My adrenaline kicked into overdrive as his hands tried to writhe up from my arms to their prize. I was on the verge of hyperventilation.

"I'd appreciate it if you stopped, Reed," I said. I tried to sound genuine and humble, a contrast to my sharp defiance from before. Hadn't I just threatened to kill him, and now I was practically pleading?

"Hayley, don't lie to me. Ask me to stop if it's what you want, not if you're too scared of what you _really_ desire."

His voice was dark but not as menacing as earlier. I was actually able to ponder over his words rather than fear anything he said.

"I-I…" I began, with failed intention to repeat my previous request.

"I won't tell you again. _Don't lie_." As he breathed this into my ear, his grip around my waist tightened. Instead of going for the prize, he lifted me up and carried me to the far side of the underground workroom. Couldn't say I wasn't surprised when he put_ his_ back against the wall, versus pushing me roughly against it, with his arms still wrapped around me. For a moment, we both stared at the room before us; its dark walls contrasted with the florescent lighting and shiny, metal dissection table where demon corpses were traditionally laid.

Then, Reed pressed his lips on my neck just below the ear, and our world dissolved into only our bodies and the air between us.

Though I did feel tired from the hours of drug-extracting I'd been slaving over, the reason my knees became suddenly wobbly was not from fatigue. Reed said nothing, only supported my weight with one arm while using the other to reach under my bra to the prize he'd been after; the arms I'd previously used to pin his hands were now clinging to him for balance. There was nothing to keep his tender touches from coming into contact with my breast, and I couldn't stop the moan that escaped when he pinched my sensitive bud.

Familiar pressure and warmth arose between my legs. An odd sense of reversed déjà vu came to mind as Reed kissed the side of my neck while groping and doing what he liked with my body.

Finally, his uncharacteristic gentleness began to calm me when his hand drew circles on my hip. I sighed against his toned chest and let my head fall to the side so he could kiss my neck more freely.

I felt relaxed and without anger, until the hand on my chest darted down and yanked my pants off my hips without much warning. Though still placid, his sudden movements made me tense all over again. Perhaps that was the point- Reed being easy couldn't come without a catch. He still controlled every reaction I made even though he wasn't being forceful.

The power he had over me was truly startling; because I hadn't even thought to fight him off even after my bottoms, and panties both, hit the floor.

Maybe it was because I was distracted by the trail of hot kisses he gave my neck. Maybe it was because this _really_ was what I truly desired, after all. I shuddered, with lust and disgust, as I came to terms with this thought. It made me feel naked in the mental sense that he could see through me so easily.

Now, however, I was becoming naked in the physical sense.

But was I wrong to feel this way, even after what happened earlier? He'd been crushing and coarse, but now he was nicer and let me have more freedom rather than binding me into a tight place. He was still acting relentless and powerful, but maybe on some twisted Reed-level, the guy was trying to make up for his earlier actions.

Or maybe he just wanted what was between my legs.

I wasn't able to think about it anymore after he bit down lightly on my neck while his fingers simultaneously found my naked core. A blush as fiery as Reed's eyes overwhelmed me. I reached my hands down to cover my private area, but the arm around my torso snaked tighter. "If you want me to stop, you will verbalize it. Otherwise, keep your hands in my hair and let me know how much_ I know_ you want it."

As he said 'want,' he penetrated me.

I gasped and couldn't do much else besides comply with whatever he told me as I rested on his fingertips- quite literally. My hands reached up and fisted in his white hair, which gave him every notion to continue. Every push of his hand made me tug at his scalp, which encouraged a more diligent pace… Christ, I was melting with pleasure as the heat from where he touched spread into my toes and fingers. Eyes closed, because I couldn't bear to look down and see what the hell was happening to cause such a delicious feeling, I rested my head on Reed's shoulder and let whatever sounds I wanted out. Mostly moans, because I felt sensational, but as his practice became faster, my pitch became more desperate. He moved his hand harder and quicker, following some sort of rhythm I created with my pulsing body, taking me higher and higher, until…

Reed's arm wrapped around my waist, massaging my breast, came in handy when I felt a break somewhere in the pit of my stomach, and a shattering heat spread through my body ten times greater than the pleasant warmth from before. My toes curled and knees gave out and my back arched with pure pleasure. If not for his supporting arm, I would have crumpled to the floor. I panted as I let the exotic feeling die down from the initial eruption.

Hot wetness was the next sensation felt as Reed removed his fingers and wiped my mess on my leg. I would have been upset with his _consideration_, but I couldn't miss the rapid kisses worshipping my neck. When I bent my head to try and look at the creature who'd just given me such a powerful pleasure, I was met with an intimate kiss on my lips.

I turned around to meet him head-on, my body arching against the large arousal I didn't fail to notice on him. Without thinking, my hand reached down to grip that foreign arousal in some sort of returned-pleasure idea in my brain, but he reached out and cuffed my wrist before I reached my destination. "No. Only you. This was… only for you." He lowered his head so I couldn't clearly see the emotion on his pale face as he said this.

It was known, now. _That_ had been some sort of demented apology.

Without catching my eye, he removed himself from between the wall and I, and walked to the opposite side of the office. While his back was turned, I quickly pulled up my bottoms and made myself presentable again. "You've done your work for today. Return home."

Before I could whip out my snippy defiance from habit, I was back in the graveyard. Reed wasn't anywhere near.

The night was much colder than the other before. Wrapping my arms around my body, I started the walk home, knowing tonight would be a lonelier one. It was only when I reached my house that the sound of trailing footsteps finally made their way to my ears. As soon as I whirled around, a dark shadow zoomed passed me. I let out a small gasp and whirled back around. Only to see that there wasn't just one shadow, but several. And one of them chose to step into the light, just as I shrouded myself in the darkness of my porch. I didn't like the look of this. Not one bit.

* * *

**Note from xxdarknessxfallsxx**: Hi everybody! I have to tell miss Swan's Catastrophe that I am completely in total love with this story and it makes me soooo happy to help contribute, even if it's only through smut. XD The parts I write are supposed to be steamy and leave you hot and bothered, but if you think my writing is too distasteful or just plain confusing, please let us know in a review and I'll know what to work on. Danke!


	10. Blood On My Hands

_**A/N: Hellooo lovelies :) We've got a new chapter up for you guys, mostly in part to your incredible reviewers- and of course, the awesome and much appreciated collaborations with xxdarknessxfallsxx! **_

_**Ummidia Q, you made my day. So reviewers, keep em comin!**_

**_As always; Read, Enjoy, Review_**

**_Love ya'll_**

**_- Swan's Catastrophe_**

_**

* * *

**__**Chapter 10: Blood On My Hands**_

_You felt the coldness in my eyes, and something I'm not revealing.  
Though you got used to my disguise, you can't shed this awful feeling.  
It's the me that I let you know, 'cause I never show - I have my reasons.  
I hate to say that I told you so, but I told you so, yeah!  
There's blood on my hands, like the blood in you.  
Some things can't be treated; so don't make me,  
don't make me be myself around you._

- _Blood On My Hands, The Used_

* * *

I took another wary step towards my front door as the red-eyed men advanced. This was not good. Their crimson eyes followed my movements, and the man who stood a few feet ahead raised an eyebrow at me.

"We hear that you've offered your services to the drug dealer, Reed," said the man who I assumed to be the boss. His voice was like a deeper, darker version of Reed's.

"Offered is such a vague term," I replied nervously, voice shaking. "Really, I was tricked and forced into lending my services."

My back was against the door now, and my hand reached out behind me, searching for the doorknob. The man's eyes never strayed from my own, and he stepped towards me again, only stopping when he was only a foot or so away. On the inside, I was panicking. But on the surface…no, I was still panicking.

"What exactly do you want?" I asked, flinching when the red eyed man glared at me.

"We have a little bone to pick with your master," the man said patiently. My first thought was '_Bone to pick? What is this, the old west?'_ but then, the wheels began to turn in my head, and I quickly realized where this was going. "But because your _master_ is conveniently indisposed at the moment, we'll have to settle for sending the message through you."

My eyes widened into saucers and my hand began searching for the doorknob more frantically. Why I thought putting a door between me and these men would stop their attack, I didn't know. But, I was kind of beyond using logic at this point. And they hadn't even touched me yet!

There was a silent few seconds where I stared at the man, and he stared back. The entire time I stared, I was searching for the doorknob.

Finally, my hand closed around the small, bulbous, handle. Not wasting any time, I turned it, and nearly fell into my foyer.

Forgetting everything, including the part where I was supposed to shut the door and lock it, I ran for the stairs.

I had made it to the fourth step, a new record for creating distance between my assailants, before I was tackled. A strong hand wrapped viciously around my ankle, yanking so roughly I was surprised it wasn't torn from the socket. I screamed both out of fear and pain as I was dragged back down the stairs. At the bottom, were more red-eyed men, waiting for me. My screams intensified as they all lifted me up like some sort of sacrifice and shuffled to the door. My eyes were bulging out as I came up with eleven different nasty things they could do to me.

I struggled in their grip, finding a new reason to renew my fight. If I suddenly disappeared, Reed would have no reason to keep my mother alive, and without me, Reed wouldn't be able to handle the huge client base for Panacea so Caden would have no reason to keep Reed around. As I came to terms with the impact of this realization, I began to wonder if they had planned it like that all along.

No, there's no way they could know all of that.

"What do you want?" I screeched "Leave me alone!"

"Justice, my dear," the leader replied, he was walking calmly beside us as if it were completely normal for a bunch of supernatural men to be hoisting a human girl above their heads like a sacrifice to King Kong. "We want justice."

I screamed again, managing to kick my way out of their grip. As soon as I hit the ground, it was again fight or flight. This time, I decided to go a different route than my usual.

I fought. And I fought hard.

I was actually doing well until the leader man decided to get involved. One swift upper-cut, and I was down for the count.

"I hate it when they have to be difficult," the leader sighed, inspecting his punching hand idly. I cried softly to myself as I tried to rise back to my feet. My jaw felt like it had been smashed with a sledgehammer. The pain was excruciating. I was faintly aware of the gravel decorating my cheek from where I hit the ground. It stung, but it was nothing like the pain in my jaw. Even when Reed was being rough, he was never _that_ rough.

A strong hand wrapped around my arm and pulled me forcefully to my feet.

I was surprised at how submissive I had become. It was as if that brief connection of skin when the man had touched me had somehow drained the fight right out of me. Or the life. I stood numbly, expecting another blow, or another cryptic speech from the leader, but it never came. Instead, the man who was basically holding me on my feet loosened their grip. If I wanted to, I could just rip my arm from their grasp, and run off again.

Surprise turned into curiousness and I raised my eyes from the ground to see what was going on.

In front of me, the red-eyed leader was being held up off the ground by a strong, pale hand that was wrapped around his throat.

"Unhand her," the male snapped, not breaking eye contact with the leader. The message was clear even without his attention. In an instant, I was free of binding hands. The man, still holding up the leader, turned to make sure and offered me a quick wink before turning back to the leader.

It was Caden!

"I believe you're forgetting who's in charge of this area, Shepard." Caden told the man. "I am the sheriff, and I decide who is kidnapped and who is not- and this girl," Caden paused to point at me, "is not to be touched," he finished. His voice grew cold for the last part.

"I should have you killed right here and now for letting your men parade her around without so much as a glamour," Caden snarled.

"But it's the middle of the night, all of the humans are asleep-"

"Do you think they remained asleep when her screams echoed throughout the entire neighborhood?" Caden interrupted, his eyes began to take on a silver tint.

The lead guy, Shepard, seemed to take the hint, and shut up.

"Now I'll let you off with a warning this time, but if something like this happens again, I'll have all of your heads," Caden said, eyeing each and every red eyed man present. "Understand?"

They all nodded, before vanishing into thin air. Absently, I began working my jaw- before the pain exploded ten times worse than before. Why am I so stupid? My eyes filled with tears, and I tried to cradle my mouth without actually touching it.

"You should get some ice on that," Caden said coolly, analyzing me with critical blue eyes.

I forced myself to ignore the pain long enough for my mouth to form the words '_Thank You._'

His icy eyes softened infinitesimally and he nodded in the direction of my house "I'll walk you home," he said gruffly, avoiding my gaze for the rest of the trip.

Apparently, my definition of walking someone home and Caden's definition were two completely different things. Instead of going back to wherever he came from when we reached my front door, he walked me upstairs into my bedroom, fluffed up my pillows before tucking me into bed, and then disappeared downstairs. A few minutes later, he returned with an ice pack, and a cup of chamomile tea.

I had never been more embarrassed in my life.

I wasn't used to being babied. Even before my mom was sick, I was usually the independent, 'I can take care of myself' type. So, this was completely foreign to me. Especially since the person babying me was not only a vampire, but a man who threatened to condemn Reed and I to death for the murder of his brother and his father if we didn't sell 'vampire steroid-spiked Panacea.'

The thing that pissed me off most was that I was only guilty of one of those crimes- and Reed wasn't guilty of either of them. God, I'd gotten us into some deep shit.

I picked up the notebook and pencil that Caden had set on my bedside table and began scribbling onto its blank page. When I was done, I flipped the notebook over, and all but shoved it in Caden's face.

He read the words I had written with slight disinterest, raising an eyebrow at me over the notebook when he finished. Giving a bored sigh, he took the notebook and pencil from my hand and jotted down his reply.

When he handed the notebook back to me, I smirked at what he wrote.

In messy handwriting at the top of the page, was my scribbled question: _Why are you doing this?_

Apparently, it didn't take long for Caden to register that I was referring to the babying instead of the blackmail because a few lines underneath my question, Caden had written: _Protecting my investment._

I sighed painfully, slowly shaking my head. Why was it that all supernaturals saw me as some sort of property or "investment" instead of a person with feelings, and emotions, and **breakable bones**.

I sunk deeper into the mattress of my bed as I absently petted Lucy, who was curled up and purring beside me.

After about a half hour of silence, I began working my jaw. It still hurt, but now it hurt as if it were bruised and sore instead of the searing white pain it had been a little over an hour ago.

"When are you leaving?" I asked, trying to speak yet move my jaw as little as possible.

Caden reclined in his chair, glancing at my bedroom door.

"Oh, in about, 5...4...3...2..." He trailed off just as my bedroom door burst open. Reed's red eyes were fixed on Caden as he moved further into the room.

"Caden," Reed hissed. "Why have Shepard and his goons been sniffing around this place and the graveyard?"

"They're doing a lot more than "sniffing" as you can see," I grumbled, wincing beside myself when I felt some sort of grating when my jaw moved.

"Will you stop talking!" Caden snapped, turning away from Reed to glare at me. I rolled my eyes but obeyed as I fell under the scrutinizing gaze of Reed.

His red eyes smoldered when they landed on my bruised and swollen jaw before skipping to Caden, and then to my bedside table where an empty teacup, notebook and pencil, and baggy filled with melted ice all lay.

Narrowing his eyes, Reed sighed and crossed his arms.

"Okay, I give up," he said caustically, rolling his eyes skyward as his tongue flicked out to trace his lower lip. "Why would Shepard attack Hayley, why would you _save_ Hayley, and why is there yet another fucking undead demon in my workroom?"

* * *

**_A/N: xxdarknessxfallsxx here! Thanks everybody soooooo very much for all the reviews and feedback! There was one in particular that made me break into a huge grin, when a certain somebody called me a "self-titled smut artist." I think I fell in love._**

**_You guys make me so happy. I'm just as addicted to this as you are._**


	11. Girl Talk

_**A/N: Hello my lovelies. xxdarknessxfallsxx and I have a new chapter for ya, here. So, don't read it too fast or you'll get a brain freeze.  
Bad joke, I know. But I couldn't resist.**_

**_Now, without further adieu: Read, Enjoy, Review._**

**_Like always,_**

**_ - Swan's Catastrophe_**

_**

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**__**C**__**hapter 11: Girl Talk**_

_Speak for me, speak when I'm falling_

_You pull my strings_

Squeeze on me, temptation is calling

_They pull my strings_

_-Girl Talk, Chris Corner_

* * *

"Ah-ha!" I shouted gleefully, pain in my jaw momentarily forgotten. I leapt to my feet and pointed a smug, accusing finger at Reed.

"I told you I wasn't the one bringing them back. I was getting dragged from my house kicking and screaming earlier- _not_ bringing dead demons back to life," I sing-songed.

"You really have no sense of self-preservation what so ever, do you?" Caden grumbled, rolling his eyes.

Reed, on the other hand, was giving me a mischievous smirk. I didn't trust it one bit.

"Actually," he said, taking a step towards me, "you could have done it earlier, and the demon could have tracked you back to the workroom, where you spent quite a bit of time this evening." His tone was mocking, but I couldn't miss the slight sexual undertones as his hand gently brushed over my bruised jaw. Thankfully, Reed's hand covered the sharp blush that had spiked my cheeks from Caden's gaze. His hands were unable to mask, however, the very visible shiver I gave when Reed's hand dipped down to my throat, and brushed over his own 'love-bites.'

"I'm not ruling anything out yet," he said softly, before dropping his hand back down to his side.

A few feet back, Caden sighed and rose from his chair. "As awkward as this little exchange has been, I have to go figure out why we have an undead demon problem."

Reed's eyes landed on Caden and narrowed slightly

"So you have no idea what's going on?" Reed asked, barely masking his suspicion.

Caden shrugged. "Not at the moment. But I intend to find out."

"Yes," Reed hissed. "It would be a lot easier to move your product if I didn't have to worry about a demon-zombie tearing my workplace to shit."

"Just do your job, and I'll do mine," Caden said with narrowed eyes. After offering me a brief nod, Caden turned and left my room- and I assumed my house altogether.

When I was done staring after the vampire, I began mapping the lines of my jaw with my fingers. It was still tender in some places, but the ice had done wonders. There was just one place in particular that the pain was particularly sharp, and it sent me wincing every time my fingers brushed over it. Yet somehow, I couldn't stop myself. I was like one of those kids who'd just lost a tooth and had to constantly poke their tongue through the gap to feel the slight, tender, pain.

"Are you a masochist or something?" Reed asked suddenly, eyeing my handling of my sore jaw with distaste. I snorted.

"Masochism, is when someone gets some sort of sick sexual pleasure by being humiliated or abused by their partner…" I trailed off, thinking of Reed's and my previous adventures. After a few seconds of thought, I shrugged. "Hm, I don't know."

Reed's eyes raked over me, sending yet another shiver down my spine; it wasn't a shiver of fear- quite the opposite actually. I decided to opt for a subject change.

"So what does this guy Shepard have against you?" I asked.

Reed looked at me for several long seconds before deciding to answer, like he wondered if I was worth answering. "You remember what we talked about earlier in the dumpsite, about demon genocide."

I nodded, waiting for him to continue. His bloody eyes seemed to stare passed me now, instead of into me.

"Well, Shepard and his men _are_ demons. And they don't take too kindly to me 'exploiting' the death of their people for profit. Especially since their people…are my people," Reed said slowly.

I stared at him for what seemed like hours, watching the slight crease between his brows as he stared straight back at me, waiting for my reaction. Honestly, I wasn't all that surprised. I started suspecting what Reed was when I'd had my first look at the dead-and-then-undead demon in his workroom. You can't have eyes _that_ similar to someone with whom you have no ties. I wasn't surprised, but I was shocked. I didn't think that Reed would ever actually tell me what he was. I guess I was kind of hoping that whatever he was had not been a servant of god (like an angel), before turning against the holy creator and being cast down to hell.

If you believe in that kind of stuff.

Most shocking was the sudden need to comfort him, or assure him of…something. Mostly, it was just a need to touch him.

"A demon," I said in a low voice, edging away from him ever so slightly. It wasn't because I was frightened of him; in fact, I wanted to throw myself into his arms. But I couldn't let Reed know that, so I let the boy believe the reason I moved away from him was out of disgust… not lust- or whatever it was that I was feeling right now.

"Yes, a demon," Reed replied, more harshly than necessary. Must have been a touchy subject, considering how bitter he seemed when talking about the demon genocide at the dumpsite. I felt sorry for him, in a way. His life-style called for him to mutilate bodies of his own race, and he probably didn't willingly choose that profession; he probably did it to stay alive by using guys like Caden for protection, even though there still was a chance Reed would get killed.

"Don't," Reed growled in a low voice. I frowned at him, confusion etched on my face.

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

Reed stepped towards me, his red eyes blazing.

"Do not pity me. I don't need your pity," he spat.

My mouth fell open and I scrambled for something to say. "I-I-,"

"Just shut up, Hayley," Reed sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. I recognized the familiar tightening in my throat; the tightening that threatened tears would soon follow. Turning away, I visibly swallowed.

"Fine," I said darkly. "No more of me feeling sorry for you, or making excuses for the reasons that you are the way you are. Because the truth is, Reed, you're a self-absorbed asshole who doesn't deserve my pity."

I brushed passed him on my way to the door, and he turned with me. The look in his crimson eyes told me that he was mad, furious even, but he was holding himself back. I could practically see the menacing black clouds building up inside of him. His eyebrows came together with a small frown on his lips, and he followed me to the door.

"Where are you going?" he demanded. "It's the middle of the night."

"I'm going away from you," I said caustically. "Was that not already obvious?"

This time, as I turned, Reed's hand closed around my arm and forced me around to face him.

"What's the real reason behind your sudden attack, hm?" he questioned.

I avoided his gaze, and in retaliation, Reed began lightly tapping his finger on the area of my jaw that still hurt like a bitch. I raised my eyes to glare daggers at him and he smirked, raising an inquiring eyebrow.

"Well?" he prompted. I continued to glare, but let out a defeated sigh when Reed refused to let it go.

"I don't like what you're doing to me, Reed." I said finally. "Before I met you, I lived a safe, carefree, life where my only worries were when my mom would give in to her cancer. Now, I have to worry about having my throat torn out by your vampire customers, being attacked by undead demons, or dragged off never to be seen again by a bunch of demon extremists who want to 'send a message.' I'm sick of my life being in constant danger."

"You signed a contract, or have you forgotten?" Reed replied easily to my outburst.

"Screw legalities! You're a _demon_, I shouldn't trust anything you say or do!" With that, I ripped my arm free and hurried down the stairs and outside the house. On the way, I grabbed my jacket and slipped it on tight- the night was cold and I was planning on letting my legs carry me wherever the hell they wanted, just as long as I was away from _him_.

Within the half-hour, I walked in front of the hospital my mom was admitted into. Visiting hours weren't at this time of night, but the nurses on staff usually let me see my mother anyway because of our limited time left together. My throat tightened up again at that thought, on top of every other worry I had at the moment. Taking a deep breath, I gathered up my remaining energy and entered the hospital. As suspected, the nurse looked up from her desk at my entry and offered me a warm smile.

"Go right on in," she said softly. I nodded my thanks and began the seemingly endless trek to my mother's hospital room. I glanced from side to side nervously, sneaking peaks inside the open rooms.

I'd never really liked hospitals. They always seemed so sterile, and cold, and…lonely. When my mom was diagnosed, my dislike for hospitals turned into a burning hatred. They were terrible, awful places that reeked of death and pine-sol. But I supposed my opinion was biased because of the woman lying in the room down the hall with a count-down over her head.

I came to my mother's room and peeked in through the small window on the door. The room was completely dark except for the small overhead light that shined down on my mother, bringing out the faint red tint in her brunette hair that I rarely saw. I smiled softly, and then entered her room. I didn't start breathing again until I was sitting in the chair by her side.

As if sensing my presence, my mother's eyes fluttered and opened. She smiled at me, reaching out to grab my hand.

"Hey baby. It's late, what are you doing here?" she asked. "What's wrong?"

I gave her my most assuring smile, and shook my head. "Nothing, mom, I just wanted to see you."

"There you go again," she whispered, "always worrying about me."

I wiped tears from my eyes and squeezed her hand.

"Well one of us has to worry about you. You've never cared much about self-preservation."

My mother laughed softly, stroking my face lovingly.

"I know it sounds crazy, Hayley, but I actually think I'm getting better," my mom admitted, a strange grin on her face. I frowned, wiping away my remaining tears.

"What?" I asked, disbelieving what I was hearing.

My mom's smile only widened. "I don't want to get your hopes up or anything, but last night my doctor was rerunning some tests for procedure, to see if any of my treatments were working- and they came back positive. Sweetie, I'm in remission."

I stared at my mother dumbfounded. How could this be possible? Ignoring the obvious answer, that Reed is actually a demon of his word. My mother has terminal cancer; how can someone _cure_ terminal cancer?

At the same moment that I became filled with doubt, my chest exploded with pride. _This_ was the only reason I did all of the labor I had for Reed. To see my mother's smiling face, to listen to her soothing voice, to know that I'd have someone who loved me unconditionally no matter how bad I messed up. She was the only reason I put up with Reed's shit. I was doing it for her.

The more I repeated it to myself, the more I actually started to believe it.

As much as I despised Reed for being a jerk, I couldn't bring myself to hate him. He'd kept his promise. He would give me my mom back as long as I held up my end of the deal. And as I stared back at my mother, returning her smile, I knew I could do it. I wouldn't let anything stop me from having this one thing. No amount of undead demons, or vampire sheriffs, or any other sort of supernatural creature would keep me from my mom.

"I'll have to stay for a few more weeks, so that they can be completely sure the cancer won't be coming back, but I just might be walking out of those hospital doors with you soon," my mom said with barely disguised joy.

I beamed at her, and she ruffled my hair.

"You're my little miracle, Hayley."

I felt myself grow stiff, and I quickly shook it off before fixing a questioning look on my mom.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Well, I'd given up," my mom explained, leaning back, "but I saw how much you fought, and how hard you wished to make me better. It gave me hope, and I started to believe again. You made me want to keep going, and now, I may have that chance."

I smiled at her sadly before crushing her in a tight hug.

"I love you mom."

She sighed against my shoulder. "I love you too, sweetie. Now go get to bed, it's late, and you have school tomorrow."

I rolled my eyes, and gave her one last hug goodbye, but then I left the hospital with a completely renewed outlook.

Everything was going to be okay. Reed and I would get over whatever was going on between us, we'd get Caden off of our backs, I'd work for Reed awhile longer, and then he'd release me and we'd both go our separate ways. Hopefully Reed would leave with a bit more humanity, but I suspected that would be asking too much.

I knew only one thing for sure, everything would work out. It had to. Because if it doesn't work out, I don't know what I'll do. I'll be left with nothing.

I'm Hayley Kindler. And right now, I'm just hoping for the best.


	12. We Are Young

_**A/N: Sorry for the long wait guys. It's my fault. I've got no internet so me and xxdarknessxfallsxx have been having some major issues sending the chapters back and forth (and by "me and xxdarknessxfallsxx" I mean me" Anyway, I thought i'd post this- xxdarknessxfallsxx wanted me to change two words but i'll have to do it when i get my internet back up :(**_

_**So for now, Read Enjoy Review,**_

_**- Swan's Catastrophe**_

_**

* * *

**_

_**Chapter 12: We Are Young**_

_Dance with the devil, don't be shy  
Nothings gonna stop us  
We can't die  
Sleepin' in a bed, waking up outside  
At least I can say I tried  
So fathers, don't let go of your daughters  
We take what we want, we don't borrow  
Think I found a message in a bottle  
This says "Drink me, drown your sorrows"_  
_-We Are Young, 3OH!3_

Reed fingered the small vial of Panacea in his pocket. He'd never much wondered about the effects the drug could have on another demon much less himself, since it could be viewed as cannibalism, so there was good reason for that- but he still toyed with the thought, much like he was toying with the small vial. He sighed, red eyes scanning the area around him.

It would only take Shepard and his band of psychotic followers to ruin Reed's night completely. Things with Hayley had not gone well, and he was in a rather "dark" mood. When he finally reached the graveyard, Reed was even angrier than when he left Hayley's house.

That girl really got under his skin and into his bloodstream, and finally his head- Until the only things left were thoughts of her.

Reed absolutely hated her for this, yet he couldn't fight the lure to her. She seemed to have no problem whatsoever pushing him away, another thing that she beat him out at. If anything, being around the girl would probably bring permanent damage to his ego. But when he was alone like this, he couldn't help but reminisce about the feel of her soft lips against his own, the way she sighed and panted as he worked her with his fingers. The whole experience was delicious, and intoxicating, and completely off limits. But god, she was beautiful.

He entered the workroom, groaning internally when he saw the undead demon still there. He had no doubt that this sudden appearance of undead beings was some sort of karma, or more likely the work of Shepard. Reed could only wonder what Hayley had done to deserve karma in the shape of himself. Although, she didn't really seem to be complaining- excluding of course, their last interaction.

And again, his thoughts were back on the girl.

Narrowing his eyes, he stormed to the other side of the work room and snapped the undead demon's neck in one swift movement. Then, just to make sure, he set fire to the corpse, (outside of course).

By the time that Reed re-entered his workroom, he felt exhausted. Without a thought, he hopped up on the steel, metal table where he usually examined corpses and laid back, resting his head on his hands and crossing his legs at the ankle. He'd gotten himself into some deep shit this time. It was bad enough that he had Caden on his back, but now he had to look out for Shepard, too.

"Deus succurro nos totus," he muttered to himself, becoming lost in the glare of the overhead light.

…

…

"Reed?"

The demon jerked up, caught completely off guard by the familiar female voice. He assumed he would be alone for awhile; and goddamn, just when he was about to drift away and stop thinking about her, she fucking appeared.

"Great timing," he spat sarcastically, pinching the bridge of his nose to relieve the onset of a stress-induced headache. When he opened his red eyes to gaze upon her, all thought and pain dissolved like smoke in a breeze.

Hayley leaned against the doorframe of his office with her hair wind-blown and her creamy cheeks flushed red from the cold outside. Without thinking, Reed planted his two feet on the ground and faced the girl as if her presence deserved attention and respect, instead of his usual uninterested and cynical disposition. He didn't even bother to question why the hell she had followed him here and why she wasn't back in her house, safe. In that moment, he was relieved (and secretly prideful) that she chose to come here. After their last conversation, which hadn't ended all that well, he looked at the vivacious human standing in his office doorway with certain expectation.

The girl dropped her gaze to the floor. "I… I just wanted to apologize."

The words hit him like a bullet train. Hayley Kindler, swallowing her pride and apologizing to someone like him? His expectations were immediately exceeded and replaced with an urgent craving. This desire only grew with every small step she took toward him. Reed didn't hinder or encourage her; he didn't move or even breathe as she, the undeniable center of all his thoughts, came to _him_.

The human chewed on her bottom lip as she searched for her next words. "It wasn't fair of me to say that stuff to you about what you are. I knew you weren't human from the start. Anyway, I still want to be a part of that contract. I don't care about the danger anymore; I'll do whatever you want."

Reed still wasn't breathing when she finished, and when her mouth finally closed, she stood only a foot from him. His crimson eyes tried to stare at anything but her pink lips, which turned red as her teeth pinched the blood to the surface. Finally, he was able to avert his gaze to the wall behind her head and draw a long breath in. Which was a mistake- her scent was strong in this proximity. Fan-fucking-tastic. Now the thought of her was impossible to ignore. She was the center of his sight and scent.

He needed more.

He needed touch. He wanted taste. He would kill to hear her sounds again as he dipped his fingers in and forced her to come.

"Anything, you say?" The smirk on his face must have given away his vile intentions, because her innocent eyes put up a barrier and she walked around him to the silver dissection table.

"Anything within reason. Look, I just came to make it clear that I don't want to void the contract or something like that."

"As if you had that option, anyway," he replied a little too darkly. He stalked her and regained the lost space; she took a step back and ended up cornered against the table as their nearness became inches instead of feet. The virgin looked for a way to escape, but Reed reached out and gained the third of his five desires. Her skin felt so gentle to him, but what he touched now wasn't softer than her core, which he'd taken the privilege of touching more than once before.

"Reed-"

"Don't protest to anything you want, and that's an order under the contract you want to talk so much about."

The man couldn't help it. He appreciated her humble apology, he truly did, but at the same time, her submission was desired in more than one way and the demon in him was going to get it. The only reason he seemed so forceful was because he knew she wanted this. He could already smell her attraction as strongly as a fresh bouquet.

"Don't speak," he commanded right as she opened her mouth. Her usual snippy comebacks tended to make him even more insatiable, but right now he wanted his control, his one-up. "Remove this." He ran a finger down the center of her torso and she shivered. The intimacy created a pink blush across her untainted cheeks. "Afterwards, you can remove mine." She responded to this suggestion and fell into the trap of curiosity in order to see his naked chest. He could only smirk as she complied silently, and his insides were swelling because of her obedience.

Something seemed off, however. He didn't recall the silver dissection table being so shiny, or the light ahead to have a red tint. Maybe his desires were just getting in the way of cognitive thinking.

"Reed, I don't know about this… I've never done this before."

Yep, cognitive thinking was lost as her pure, humanity-filled eyes gazed up at him and she basically told him she wanted him- she just didn't know the awesome pleasure it would bring her, and it was human habit to be fearful of the unknown.

Her hands crossed her chest to cover the mounds in her bra. Reed took her hands and shoved them up his shirt so she wouldn't cover herself. The pinkish blush grew more potent on her white cheeks, and her fingers crawled carefully and slowly up his front to trace the outlines on his fit chest. As was the anatomy of a demon: basically they were the best of the human form so it was easier to not only blend with the race, but beguile as well. As the girl's eyes filled with wonder, it seemed his anatomy was working and soon his shirt disappeared. Her flushed skin, which now reached from forehead to neck, was too much for Reed to contain himself.

The demon cupped her face with his hands and tilted her head back so he could acquire his fourth desire: taste. Nothing seemed more intimate with her than a kiss, especially hot, amorous ones like now as his mouth covered hers. She always tasted sweet, for some reason, and her lashes tickled his cheek as he attempted to steal air and leave her breathless. When he allowed her to separate, he grinned at how she gasped for breath, but then tried to lean in for more. He cut her off by turning his head to the side and moving his mouth next to her ear.

"Let me take care of you. There's nothing to worry about."

The chaste girl believed him because she nodded her head, and Reed made sure this was followed by removal of her jeans before she could start to doubt. The demon lifted her up on the table behind her so her legs could wrap around him; his straining arousal became the center of attention as he crushed his hips against hers.

He needed this, but he would never admit it to her.

He would string her along and have her believe she received his attention because she wanted it and he was the asshole with no boundaries willing to give it to her.

Hayley's body jerked against his and she moaned when Reed rubbed himself against her just right… He stopped moving and let his red eyes sink into her for a few still moments. "Tell me what you want."

"I don't know," she replied bashfully. "This seems, off."

Reed scrunched his eyebrows together as he noticed another thing wrong with the scene: Hayley's body was in perfect condition. Not that she normally wasn't attractive… There was no swelling from the jaw injury. No bruising from his own previous strong grips on her arms and throat.

He was definitely overanalyzing things.

Reed got back on task by acquiring his final needed desire, which was to hear her shout his name. The man ripped the rest of her clothes off and penetrated the area between her legs with his fingers. The girl's head fell back as he supported her with one arm, and the red-tinted light above made her creamy body a lovely crimson, which looked insanely enticing to the demon. She moaned as he pleasured her, his eyes never leaving her for even an instant. Her slight rock and tiny pants between moans were too perfect, too… artificial. So unlike the Hayley he touched earlier.

"If I didn't want you be my first, would you still try to take my virginity from me?"

Reed seemed confused as she asked this. Her eyes locked with his and her blush disappeared as her face grew serious.

The worst part was, he couldn't answer. Would the demon inside just take what it wanted anyway?

Suddenly, Hayley wacked his hand away and used her leg to drop-kick him in the head. He tumbled over…

…

And landed face-first on the hard ground of his workroom. The white light above the silver dissection table swayed back and forth as he lay still on the floor.

His 'morning wood' pressed painfully against his pants as he came to the sickening realization that the entire encounter had been a dream. Making lewd motions to the suffocating arousal in his jeans, Reed let out a growl and fell back against the ground. Why had his mind decided to torture itself like that? What was the point?

Reed thought about the girl and the last point in the dream- or nightmare. The big V, virginity. Shredding her purity by an act as delicious or sinful as sex, or rape, even. Certainly he was capable at the latter. The question was, would he do that to her?

The demon groaned and sat up, rubbing his temples as the onset of a headache rolled through his frontal lobe. Even as he slept, he couldn't get his mind off her.

Something had to be done, and fast.


	13. I Am Terrified

**A/N: xxdarknessxfallsxx** here! **Swan's Catastrophe** and I now present the REAL chapter 13! We hope you enjoy it and forgive us for the little mix up with chapter 3. :D Please re-submit your reviews for the chapter if it lets you. We apologize once again!

_**Chapter 13: I am Terrified**_

_But the gravity between us, won't keep us safe_

_I am terrified, I think too much,_

_I get emotional, when I drink too much_

_I buy every cry, cause I don't trust_

_I am terrified, I think too much_

_ - I am Terrified, IAMX_

I paced back and forth outside the graveyard gates anxiously. This was completely stupid, I knew, and I'd probably regret it in the future- but right now my thoughts were on my mom. That visit with her had put things into a new perspective for me.

I remember, when I had just begun working for Reed, selling his product, harvesting his product, blah, blah, blah. At first, it had all seemed so incredible to me. I had felt so detached to the world that Reed had shown me, had told myself that no matter how dangerous the creatures were, or how big a price that the knowledge came with, nothing could touch me because everything about this new world was too magical to be real, too magical to cause any real damage. It was when I was selling in the graveyard one night that my idealistic look on the world of shadows and demons and vampires shattered like brick to glass.

I stared at the vampire in front of me as I handed him the clear vial of glowing purple and gold. He wasn't our usual rugged looking, tweaked vampire. He looked normal, almost human, and he was friendly. In the end, my curiosity forced me to ask why he was buying the drug, and his reply was simple and curt: _We have no choice. When you are in a war, and highly outnumbered, this drug is our only advantage. Otherwise, we would be slaughtered- and vanish from the earth completely._

I had stared at him for a long time then, and in the second it seemed that everything came crashing down on me. This world that Reed brought me into wasn't magical or glamorous; it was bleak and violent and full of darkness. It was a world of hidden evil shrouded by the cover of magic and power, and in that moment, the shroud fell away. I saw this world, this underground place where genocide was an everyday occurrence, where men were forced to exploit their own people for the sake of empty promises of safety. It was overwhelming, and I hadn't asked for any of it, but after my talk with my mom, I realized, Reed hadn't asked for it either.

Or at least I don't think he asked to be a drug selling demon that conned girls into giving him their souls.

I sighed, glancing back at the graveyard and wringing my hands nervously. Before I could let myself hesitate, I pushed through the gates and began my walk towards Reed's workroom. Luckily, Reed had shown me a way to get in, that didn't involve me falling through an empty grave- or Reed having to be there in person.

There was a tomb in the far right corner of the cemetery, I made my way over to it and forced up the giant lock that rested in the middle of the heavy stone door; it swung open into Reed's workroom. My eyes scanned the area blandly and I could feel my heart building up to an above normal pace. Reed was in the center of the workshop, lying completely still on top of the "dissection table". I didn't know what else to call it. It sent a sudden shock of fear through me- he was paler than usual if that were possible, and he was _so _still…

At last, I saw the faint motion of his chest rising as he took a breath, and I relaxed. He wasn't dead. Thank god.

"Reed," I said uncertainly. I watched as his entire body went rigid and his red eyes snapped open, zeroing in on me. Oh, god, was he still mad at me?

"Damn it all," Reed groaned. "Not again."

I didn't even bother trying to guess what he was going on about. I had business to attend to.

"I wanted to…apologize, for earlier," I said, forcing the words out. The apology left a bitter taste in my mouth and I frowned. "I just want you to know that I still want to be a part of the contract. From now on, you're the boss."

Reed rose from the table faster than I could have imagined and stormed towards me; red eyes blazing. Yes, he was definitely angry. I didn't know why, I _had_ just apologized to him. The ungrateful prick. Within a second he was in front of me, and took me by the shoulders, shaking me without any real force.

"Stop it," he commanded, his breath brushing over my face. "Stop torturing me!"

I was torn between the urge to smack him and the urge to kick him. Then, there was another urge to run my fingers through his hair, whispering words of comfort until that cynical, sad look left his eyes; but that's neither here nor there.

"_What_ are you talking about?" I snapped, swiping his hands away. "I just came to apologize."

Reed took a step away from me and scanned me very slowly with his eyes. After a few seconds his eyes were once again on mine, and he raised a pale eyebrow.

"Hayley?"

I narrowed my eyes at the demon. "Is this another one of your jokes?" I accused "I'm not gonna say _I'm sorry_ again, so you can forget about it."

Reed visibly relaxed, looking at me with something between awed horror and amusement.

"As I recall, you didn't actually use the words _I'm sorry_. In fact, that was hardly an apology at all." He said this in his usual caustic, if not a little shaky Reed-voice.

"Fine," I hissed. "I'm sorry."

Reed smiled savagely before shrugging. "Forgiven."

I smiled back at him and raised an eyebrow "So, do you mind telling me what all that _'damn it all, not again'_ and _'stop torturing me'_ stuff was about?" I asked.

Reed sighed, blinking slowly. "If you must know, I had a dream about you before you arrived," he admitted smoothly.

My smile widened and I leaned backward on the heels of my feet. "You had a dream about me?" I repeated.

"It was more like a nightmare, actually."

The grin was wiped from my face and I narrowed my eyes. After a few seconds thought, I decided to play with him a little.

"Funny," I said slowly, circling around him. "A similar thing happened to me."

Reed swallowed, but somehow he managed to seem nonchalant as he replied, "Oh?"

My smile stretched further across my face, and I forced a look of naïve innocence. "Yep. I was in my room when you suddenly appeared and then-"

I was cut off when Reed forced me against the workroom door, pinning me between the cool concrete and his feverishly hot body. The feeling wasn't unpleasant. He gathered up my hands in his own and pinned them above my head as he ground his hips into mine. I gasped, and have to admit that it could've been mistaken easily for a moan.

"Tell me, Hayley," Reed whispered, his warm breath at my ear causing me to shiver. "Are you going to make it a habit of lying through your teeth to me while under my employment?"

I giggled softly, proud of myself even if he had caught on so quickly. I really had to work on my deception skills. Without warning, Reed silenced my laughs with a passionate kiss. It took my breath away, but he only seemed to be more determined to make me let out a breathy moan- something that I currently didn't have the air for. I sensed that he knew that, but he continued to work my lips with his own, only pulling back when I was on the verge of suffocation. I gasped for air, and became light-headed when the oxygen rushed back to my brain. This multiplied the other sensations that were currently swimming through my head…and other parts.

I melted against him as he captured me in another kiss- this one unlike any of the other kisses Reed and I shared. It was gentle, just barely a caress, and it was filled with so much…pain wasn't the right word… it was something deeper than pain. It was longing, but also something worse than that. Something I couldn't put words to.

My heart froze in my chest as I pulled back and stared at Reed. He couldn't have feelings for me, could he? I had always brushed off his advances as nothing more than pure lust- plain and simple. But could there be more? Were demons capable of feeling more?

We were both panting, and we were both staring at each other as I thought of this.

"You should go," he said softly. "It's late, you need your rest."

I wanted to argue. I wanted to demand that he confess his true feelings. And most of all, I wanted to kiss him again. But after a few seconds more of staring at him, memorizing the sharp angles and smooth planes of his face, and the way his eyes glittered like molten hot coals, I nodded, turned, and left the workroom.

_**Reed's POV**_

Reed couldn't take much more of this. He was becoming obsessed, he could tell. And obsessive was a very dangerous thing for a demon to be. Even humans knew the effects of a demon who was obsessed with a person. Although Reed highly doubted that he would torment and terrorize Hayley in her home before he finally decided to possess her and force her to commit acts of violence and madness on the town, then finally leading her to her death, while he goes into the high regards of the elders- but it had happened before. _Not_, of course, to him, but as things were going now, it wasn't out of the question.

He just did not understand this at all. He wasn't even one of the Original demons; the ones still able to wreak havoc and tempt society from the safety of hell. He doesn't have the power of Abbadon, or Lilith, or Samael- hell, he didn't even have their type of bloodlust.

He didn't see what's so amusing in toying with humans the way that they do. He doesn't _want_ to terrorize and torment humans. What would his elders say about this? A demon, in possession of a human virgin's soul, who hardly exploited that resource at all. He could see their faces now.

_Instead of doing what any other demon would do, you're __**curing**__ her ill mother and asking for nothing in return other than aid in your __**drug**__ business?_

Reed narrowed his eyes, jaw set. Who the hell cares what the elders think anyway? What do they know?

The demon went back to reclining on the work table and staring at the bright light, eventually dozing.

…

He woke to the sound of something- or _someone-_ shuffling around his workroom and his eyes snapped open. His gaze was met by three other pairs of eyes, each glowing bright yellow. As he stared at the intruders, a bright light reflected off a hand of shiny, deadly-looking claws.

Reed resisted the urge to bash his own head into a wall. He frowned as one of the intruders took a step towards him, grinning like a madman.

"Oh, hell," he growled to himself, red eyes flashing. Somehow, the pile of shit he was in had miraculously gotten deeper.

Then, the three men lurched forward, and attacked.


	14. Blood

**A/N: xxdarknessxfallsxx here! To make up for the error with posting 3 instead of 13 and keeping you all in suspense, we give you a very long and enjoyable chapter. No time to lose!**

**_Chapter 14: Blood_**

_So give them blood, blood,_

_Gallons of the stuff!_

_Give them all that they can drink_

_And it will never be enough_

_So give them blood, blood, __blood__._

_Grab a glass 'cause there's going to be a flood._

_ -Blood, My Chemical Romance_

Reed easily dodged out of the way, narrowly escaping their deadly blows before retaliating. As his eyes glanced over the three men's scarred and mutilated complexions, he felt a small part of him wither- while the other part, the demon part, rejoiced. They were obviously werewolves- probably hired hands, hit men, sent to dispose of the guy who's giving their enemy the upper hand in the war. He clenched his jaw, muscles tensing. At least Hayley wasn't here, which was a pleasant reversal from his dreams.

"How can I help you fellows?" Reed asked, and acted the poster child of politeness as he simultaneously cracked a glass vial of acid over one of the werewolves' head. It howled in pain, but the other two mutts didn't seem too concerned about the welfare of their companion. Interesting.

"Don't play games, parasite. You know why we're here," the first of the werewolves snarled, stuck in some grotesque half-human half-wolf form.

Reed's eyes narrowed in response to being called a _parasite_, and with admirable grace, he cracked his neck. "Well then, wouldn't want to keep you in suspense now, would we?" he replied teasingly. His eyes began to smolder within their reddened depths.

"Funny," one of the gruffer-looking werewolves remarked. It stared curiously at the werewolf currently suffering from the acid burns, who at least stopped howling as the liquid only slowly ate into his pores. Reed was almost positive that some of those glass shards would fuse to his scalp when the healing process kicked in. "I didn't know you demon cowards put up a fight."

Just like that, Reed let the demon take over completely. His features sharpened and became more harsh and defined, and he barred his newly sharpened teeth at the three intruders.

"You'd be surprised," he growled, tensing for the fight. At that same second, the door to his workroom burst open, and all four inhabitants turned to stare at the interruption. With a sort of morbid fascination, Reed watched as three undead demons stumbled into his work room. After a few seconds, the fascination gave way to annoyed rage.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me," he growled, barely able to dodge out of the way as one of the demons started throwing balls of dark energy. "This just keeps getting _better_ and better."

**_Hayley's POV_**

I frowned at the television screen, idly petting my cat Lucy as I tried to center my thoughts. It seemed like every other second my thoughts would run off into some irrelevant direction. And that irrelevant direction was Reed. I grit my teeth, deciding to give in and try to figure out the puzzle that was, and currently is, that demon.

For one, he liked me- that was obvious enough. At least, I _hope_ he liked me. There could be no other explanation for that kiss- that's what I told myself anyway. No, he liked me, and that was that. I returned those feelings, but after that _kiss_ I wasn't sure if we were on the right plane. Feeling all of that pain, and longing, and…darker stuff in that one kiss had done something to me. Altered me. I felt as if my heart had broken- for him.

Oh, what was I blabbering on about? This was all spiraling out of control. Finally, after what seemed like hours trapped in my own thoughts, I stumbled to my room and collapsed onto my bed; too exhausted to turn out the light.

….

The next morning, I went to see my mom again. It seemed like every time I saw her glowing, healthy face, I was able to actually feel some glimmer of hope. She would get better. She would live out her life, and grow old, and have grandchildren…maybe.

So, in a good mood, I skipped down to the graveyard, bag of panacea vials safely tucked away in my coat. The wind picked up considerably, and was pinching at my cheeks by the time I made it to Reed's workroom. I noticed that something seemed very wrong as soon as I approached the old tomb. The large stone door was left ajar, and I could see what looked like _fire_ damage and leftover soot on the ground. Hesitantly, I entered the room. It was empty as far as life forms went, but completely trashed. I couldn't even begin to fathom the mayhem that the room was left in.

"What the hell happened?" I whispered to myself, my gut twisting fear. Where was Reed? I took a few steps more into the workroom, inspecting the amount of damage, before my eyes came to rest on a pair of glowing red ones in the far, darkened corner. I let out a sigh of relief, taking a step forward.

"Thank, god," I said softly. "Reed, what happened? What did you do?"

I waited expectantly for a reply that never came. When I repeated the question and was again met with nothing but silence, my fear went into overdrive. I stared into the glowing crimson eyes and knew as surely as the moon was full- _that_ _was not Reed_. As if responding to the sudden change in my demeanor (I was now standing stock still and wide-eyed), the demon burst forth, with a glowing ball of fire in his right hand. Doing the only thing I could do at that point, I screamed, moving a busted chair in the demon's path, and took off running.

Surprisingly, my little chair decoy worked in giving me time to escape. The demon tripped and fell, then tried to use its hands to cushion the fall, but the ball of fire in its' hand ricocheted off the floor and hit it directly in the face. I didn't have time to marvel over the complete strangeness of what just happened because I was too busy panicking. I ran out of the workroom and was in the process of making my way to the graveyard gates when a spine-shivering sound cut through the late dusk air.

It was a howl.

I froze and my eyes carefully scanned the area. I couldn't hear anything anymore beside my breathing and the heavy pounding of my heart. There was a flash of motion in the corner of my eyes; I swiveled and came face-to-face with a giant, beastly wolf-man.

Resisting the urge to cry, I backed away, clutching my coat tighter to my chest. What the hell was going on? Why was everything attacking me?

There was a sound behind me and I turned to see another wolf stalking towards me. Oh good god, this was getting ridiculous. Together, the two wolves began herding me back towards the workroom and I began to _really _panic. I was going to die, and Reed could already be dead, and I had no idea what these fucking things wanted.

Suddenly, I was struck with an idea, and a coy grin spread across my face. I stopped backing up, but the wolves continued forward, trying to intimidate me into moving by snarling and snapping. I reached for the bag of Panacea in my pocket and closed my hand tightly around one of the syringes.

"You're gonna have to drag me if you want me to go back in there," I said stubbornly. One of the wolves seemed to bristle, but gave no further indication of attacking. The other one however, was already in the air. My scream was cut off, my breath sucked out by the impact of being tackled by a two-hundred-and-something pound wolf. But, my plan had worked. With all the swiftness I could come up with in my restrained state, my hand with the syringed vial of Panacea came up, and the needle easily sank into the wolf's skin. I watched as the glowing purple and gold contents of the vial were emptied and the wolf's eyes flashed golden before it fell off of me. High as a kite.

I smirked at the shivering wolf, smoothing down my jacket once I was back on my feet.

"Don't worry," I cooed. "The first one's always free."

A threatening growl brought me back to the present and I grudgingly looked back at the other wolf-man. Without giving it any time to attack, I ran again. It chased me an entire three blocks, but disappeared completely when I got into the more heavily populated area of town- my neighborhood.

Gathering up an air of calm, I kept my pace relaxed but brisk as I passed people on the sidewalk. Jesus, I probably looked like some wild-eyed witch. Down the street, I spotted a familiar mane of silky blonde hair and came up with another idea. My street was more secluded than this area, and I did _not_ want to risk being alone with that wolf again, so I quickly made my move.

"Hey Becca," I called out at the pretty blonde. Becca's cool blue eyes met mine and a small smile lit up her face.

"Hayley, what's up, girl?"

I smiled at Becca's attempt at western slang and skipped my way over to her.

"Nothing much, but I just remembered I still have your notes from science in my backpack. I can walk you to my house so that you have them for tomorrow's test," I said, suddenly wondering why I only sucked at lying to Reed. It wasn't a lie that I had Becca's notes; the lie was that I didn't really give a shit if she had them for the test tomorrow or not. I wasn't even sure if there was a test.

Becca didn't seem to notice this at all. Instead, she smiled appreciatively at me and wrapped her arm in mine.

"That'd be awesome, thanks Hayley."

"Don't mention it, hun," I replied distractedly, scanning the area for wolves. Nothing in sight, although there was a particularly hideous man across the street, and he was staring at me. _That_ didn't leave me feeling too good. I stared back at him, but he didn't look like anyone I'd ever seen. And I would have recognized that face- it looked like he had been burned by fire, or acid, and sometimes the sun reflected off his bald scalp like there were tiny pieces of glass stuck to his skin. I shrugged it off as him having a sweaty head, but still couldn't shake off the creeping feeling of danger.

"Do you know him?" Becca asked, her nose crinkling in distaste as she took in his appearance.

"No, but he's freaking me out. We better hurry," I said quietly, and we began walking. When we reached the turn onto my street, I glanced back to where the man was standing, hoping to get another look- but he was gone. Shivering, I continued towards my house where safety would hopefully be waiting.

….

When we finally reached my porch, I was exhausted. All that running and panicking had really affected me. I hopped up the steps to where my backpack was perched against the front door and turned to give Becca her notes.

She smiled, barely sparing them a second glance, and stared at me.

"Cool deal. Thanks again, Hayley."

"No, thank you," I said politely. "Those notes helped me a lot." Another lie. God, I was getting good at this. I shouldn't have felt so proud about that.

Again, Becca smiled her seemingly permanent good-natured smile and walked back towards her own house. I watched for a few seconds before going back to my front door. It took me a good ten seconds to unlock it, and I raced inside once I finally fiddled the key into the hole. I didn't waist a moment to shut, lock, and bolt the door closed. Once I felt the warm safety of _home_ envelope me, I closed my eyes and leaned my back against the cool wood and took a deep breath.

Today had been hell.

When I finally calmed enough to function again, I opened my eyes. Horror slowly crept into my veins at what I saw.

Blood.

Everywhere.

A giant puddle rested not two feet from me, followed by a smaller trail into the living room. I hesitantly followed it, afraid of what I would find. The room looked the same as it always did, except for the one pale figure lying motionless on the carpet, a smaller puddle of blood growing around him- making it impossible to tell exactly where the blood was coming from. I didn't need to see the pale white hair or crimson eyes to know that it was Reed. Without even thinking about moving, I was crouched above him, my wide eyes staring down at his closed ones.

"Reed?" I said uncertainly. No reply. I could feel the onset of panic ten times worse than the panic I had experienced in the graveyard, and it hit me with full force. "Reed?" I choked out again.

Still nothing.

A drop of water hit Reed's cheek, and I realized that I was crying. He can't be dead. He can't die. I brought my index finger up to his nose and breathed a sigh of relief when I felt warm air fan across my hand.

He was breathing. That was a good sign.

I glanced at the growing puddle of blood and resigned myself to the task of stopping his bleeding. Sparing one last look at his face, which seemed to grow paler by the second (for an albino, anyway), I unbuttoned his shirt and scanned his body for wounds or punctures. It was all smooth perfectness until my eyes came to rest on three large gashes across his rib cage- still seeping blood. The gashes closely resembled claw marks and I growled under my breath, thinking of the wolves. Out of my mind with dread, I quickly took off my coat and tore a huge amount of my t-shirt. I think I went a bit overboard with the ripping, because I left myself enough fabric to cover my bra, and the rest skin. I pushed that thought aside and began ripping the fabric into smaller strips when my mental voice thought that it would be a good time to interrupt.

_What are you doing, idiot?_

I ignored it and began wrapping the fabric along the gashes, careful to put enough pressure on each one.

_He's a demon, moron. Human methods of healing won't work on him._

I worked my jaw nervously, growing increasingly worried that my inner voice might be right; blood began seeping through the fabric.

_He's going to die! Give him the fucking Panacea._

I froze, frowning softly. Why the hell hadn't I thought of that? Well I just did, didn't I?

I shook my head clear and found one of the panacea vials in my coat pocket, and before I could give myself time to hesitate, I sunk the needle deep into Reed's skin. The effects were almost instantaneous. Like magic, Reed's wounds disappeared completely and his chest swelled as he sucked in a deep breath. His eyes snapped open and appeared to be a brighter red than usual. I sucked in a breath of my own, and then cried out in relief. I pulled him up and hugged him tight against myself until I could hear his heart and feel his breath. I finally let my tears fall, and sobbed uncontrollably into his shoulder.

"Hayley, what's wrong," Reed demanded in his usual, irritable voice, but his arms closing around my waist told me he wasn't irritated by me. I had saved him- he was already talking like himself. I felt pride swell within my chest.

"You," I replied, wiping my tears and pulling back enough so that I could look into his eyes. "You almost gave me a heart attack. I thought you were going to die."

"I'm surprised I didn't, actually. What'd you do?" he asked. My heart was still pounding madly within my chest, and I couldn't do anything but stare at him. He was alive, he was alright, and… he looked just as beautiful as ever. Perhaps it was the effects of the drug, but he seemed to be even more animated than usual, as if he were glowing, but not.

Probably figuring that I wasn't going to answer him, Reed did an inspection of his own- on me. His eyes didn't stray far before snapping back up to my face.

"What," he said lightly, hand coming to toy with the frayed edge of my shirt- or rather, bra cover. "Did you do to your shirt?"

I blushed from my head to my chest and looked at him nervously. "I was…trying to stop the bleeding," I admitted. "There was so much blood, I could only think of using my shirt…" Reed raised a pale eyebrow, and then, suddenly my back was slammed against the hardwood floor and Reed was above me, positioned between my legs. Before I even had time to comprehend what was happening, Reed's lips were against my neck, trailing small kisses along my throat.

"Reed?" My tone wasn't repulsed, but it did highlight my confusion. I felt overjoyed that he healed, and my body enjoyed the physical attention, but his sudden mood change came out of nowhere!

Those bright, glowing red eyes lifted from my neck and stared into mine. Usually, the demon's eyes appeared a deep crimson, even under light, but right now they couldn't be darker than a shiny ruby. I wondered momentarily if the drugs had anything to do with his _intense _mood swing.

"Don't look so astonished. Increased healing ability is just one of several attributes my kind has," Reed explained smoothly.

The depth of emotion in his eyes couldn't be distracted by his words, and I knew that the emotion he felt was sexual, raw, and erotic. I, as well as my stimulated body, recognized this Reed; however, my thoughts jumped back to yesterday in his workroom, when he gave me a kiss that tried to tell me what he truly felt inside. This intense sexual drive he had now, was it because he wanted _just_ my body, or my body along with_ me_ as well? As I debated, his hands gently caressed my flat stomach and slid upwards to the cups of my bra.

I pushed my palms on his strong shoulders so he would have a harder time exploring my skin and I could _concentrate_ for a quick minute- needless to say, the ravenous Reed didn't respond well to this, grabbed my arms and pulled me up so I was standing.

"I know what you want, Hayley." As he said this, the rest of his shirt fell from his shoulders and his thumbs hooked onto the waistband of his slacks. "And if I'm wrong, tell me so."

I couldn't help but stare at him- _all of him- _including the bulge that threatened to be revealed. He was right, no denying that, but I wanted so much more than his body. As I my previous do-anything-to-save-him actions proved, I wanted him to live and be healthy, and not only be living, but be _alive_. I wanted to give him joy, and find joy for myself in my success with making him happy. It was selfless but so egotistical at the same time: I wanted to be his savior.

If anyone should be stripping for someone, it should be_ me_ for _him_.

"I do want you, Reed," I confessed. My heart pounded as I gained the courage to do something bold, like remove my shirt and bra in one go. "But I want you to want me too!"

His glowing-ruby eyes widened with surprise. The next thing I felt was my back on the cushions of the couch that was in the room and Reed's hands tugging my bottoms off as quickly as he could get them. I stretched my bare body out and then Reed fell on top of me, to a familiar space between my legs. He pulled my thigh up so I wrapped around his body and he could grind his erection against my equally sensitive counterpart. I arched my spine as a shameless moan escaped, while he kissed his way from my neck to breast. Right when his teeth pinched my nipple, his fingers touched the aroused slit between my legs and I nearly came undone right then. Reed seemed to sense my nearness to that ecstasy, because he stopped what he did with his mouth, but not hand. I pushed my head into the cushion as his fingers flirted against an area of extreme sensibility, then slid inside. The sensation was wonderful, but I had the strangest feeling that it wasn't his fingers that should be inside me at the moment.

"Hayley, I don't know how to ask, but-"

"Yes," I moaned, interrupting him because I knew what he wanted to tell me. Call it a woman's intuition.

"I didn't even ask the question yet." He looked completely dumbfounded, and I could only shake my head at him.

"I know what you're trying to say, and the answer is yes. I want you to be my first." I couldn't actually believe that I'd said that out loud! It must have been all the _encouragement_ from down below. I glanced at the sheer shock found in Reed's eyes, not on the indifference of his face, and repeated myself with even more sureness, "I want you to be my first, Reed… and second, and thir-"

It was his turn to interrupt, by placing his free hand over my mouth. "Sweet _God_," he breathed as his head dipped into the space between my skull and shoulder. He recovered by kissing his way along my collarbone until he reached the outer side of my arm. Reed sucked in a long breath before uncovering my mouth. "You… you have to be certain," he said, completely serious and awestruck in one glance. I found it amazing how much I could read from his eyes while they were glowing so bright.

Before I could reply, a new voice cut me off.

"Interesting," it said simply.

Both Reed's and my head shot straight to the intruder, who stood in the doorway to the room.

The vampire Caden leaned casually against the jamb with his arms crossed over his chest and a faint smirk present on his face. I screamed and pulled the blanket draped over the top of the couch against my naked body while Reed tumbled to the floor. Caden seemed extremely amused with our blatant distress.

I'm Hayley Kindler, and I have never felt more mortified in my life.


	15. Heaven

_**A/N: Helloooo readers! It's been awhile, I know, but hopefully this chapter makes up for the long wait.**_

_**Like always, Read, Enjoy, Review!**_

_**- Swan's Catastrophe**_

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_**Chapter 15: Heaven**_

_I look at you, and before my eyes it's true,_

_That the girl of my dreams, Is not quite what she seems_

_Open your door, Turn on the light,_

_Show me some more; tell me it's all right_

_Heaven, is inside you; Heaven, when I ride you_

_Heaven, do you want me? Is Heaven just in my mind?_

_-Heaven, IMonster_

_

* * *

_

Oh my god, Oh my god, Oh my god! My eyes were the size of saucers as I stared across the room at Caden, and I instinctively clutched the blanket closer to myself. The vampire stared right back at me, practically oozing with amusement, and a deep red blush crept across my features. I shivered, and thankfully, Caden turned his gaze on Reed…who was zipping up his pants. I let my head fall into my hands and groaned aloud. This could not be happening. How the hell did he even get in here?

"Reed," Caden began, "I never took you to be a man who mixed business with pleasure."

"You learn something new every day." Reed shrugged caustically, looking only a tad bit breathless.

Caden grunted his agreement, eyes falling on the remains of my t-shirt, puddle of blood, and finally, on the empty vial of Panacea.

"And I certainly never took you to be a junkie," Caden remarked disinterestedly. "But, as you said, we learn something new every day."

Instead of Reed coming back with: _What an enlightening day this must be for you, _like I expected, he narrowed his eyes and frowned at Caden.

"What are you talking about?" he demanded. The vampire raised his eyebrows and gestured towards the empty Panacea vial on the floor with his foot. Recognition registered in Reed's eyes, quickly followed by rage, annoyance, and ending with irritation. His eyes flicked from the Panacea vial to me and I shrugged helplessly. Before I could try and read his eyes, they darted back to the _jerk_ that interrupted us.

"What do you want," Reed demanded finally, "that you couldn't wait long enough to knock for?"

As their entire exchange went on, I sat, nearly comatose on the couch, shaking my head. We should have moved up into my bedroom, where the creaking stairs could have warned us of intruders. The horror of my situation began seeping through every pore as I grew pale- save for the blush of course. Oh my god. What did he see- how the _hell_ did he get in- why didn't I-

As my thoughts went to places I wished they hadn't, one question remained.

"How much did you see?" I asked, interrupting whatever it was that they were arguing about. Both of their eyes snapped to mine and I tightened my grip on the blanket. Reed seemed to be apologizing with his eyes, while Caden was… well, to put it bluntly, he was giving me the creeps.

"I saw enough to know that-"

"Shut up, Caden," Reed snapped, eyes taking on a murderous tint. Caden glared at Reed and took a threatening step towards him.

"As last I recall, _demon_, I'm the one holding both your and the pretty naked girl's lives in the palm of my hand. I do not think it wise to order me around with commands, because I guarantee that I can make the both of you disappear without so much as a trace and no one would be the wiser. Do I make myself clear?"

Reed, beyond the concept of thinking rationally, took a threatening step of his own toward Caden. I realized that I had to step in quickly, before things got out of hand; well, more than they already had.

"Reed," I cut him off before he could get us into any more trouble. "Stop."

"Yes, _Reed_, why don't you listen to sweet, clever, little Hayley," Caden goaded, a small smirk on his lips.

"Shut up," I snapped at the cheeky vamp. I avoided holding his gaze as he turned a fierce glare on me, but my insides were jolted with anticipation. "What, you really make it hard _not_ to tell you to shut up."

"Thank you," Reed sighed in agreement. He narrowed his eyes at Caden as if to say _'I told you so.'_

"Now, Caden, say what you need to say, and get the hell out of my house," I said wearily.

"But I want to wat-" His mocking tailed off as I glared at him. After a few seconds, he cleared his throat, and began again. "The werewolves and Shepard's demons are starting to worry the coven. They're not so sure that our dealings with you are in our area's best interest. Get Shepard and the Wolves off your back, or I'll find someone else who can do this job- without the back-talk." Caden growled, quickly regaining his cool.

"Okay, fine, whatever- now get out," I repeated impatiently. Reed raised his eyebrows at Caden and gestured towards the door.

"You heard the lady."

Caden's eyes gleamed. "Yes. I'm fairly sure that a few moments ago, before you were aware of my arrival, the entire **block** _heard the lady_."

"Get the fuck out!" I screeched, tossing a pillow at him. By the time the pillow hit the ground, Caden was gone, and Reed was locking the door behind him.

I took a deep breath and frowned at the floor. How on earth do we get back to where we were _before_ Caden had to show up and ruin it all?

"Is he really gone?" I asked. "How did he even get inside? I know I locked the stupid door." When I was met with silence, fear twisted within my gut.

Reed's voice came from behind me, and he held my clothes out for me to put on. I took them from him, because I hated being babied. "It wouldn't be difficult for me to get in, wouldn't be a problem for a vampire either," he replied.

I nodded, just accepting the fact that these stronger, dangerous, supernatural creatures around me could get into my house whenever they wanted. Yeah right, I was totally freaked out by the idea. After I slipped basic undergarments and my pants back on, I turned toward Reed, who held the empty vial of Panacea carefully between his fingers. My vision gradually went from his hand, up his arm, to his firm chest… At some point my gaze ended up on his face, but I averted my eyes when his locked with mine. I must have blushed again when the glowing-red gaze found my body, because I felt warmth in my cheeks.

I felt grateful when he changed the subject. "It's too late to go out tonight for any business. You stay here and clean this mess while I try to recover my office- again." He sighed. "We can meet after dusk tomorrow evening." Reed seemed to be hurrying the subject to get out of the room, and away from me.

All that brashness and courage I had earlier seemed completely deflated right now. "Reed, where do we stand now?" I finally managed to choke out, albeit somewhat awkwardly because of my inability to meet his gaze.

Reed's tone was surprisingly even. "If you really meant what you said before we were interrupted, then you'll still mean it tomorrow, which should also be adequate time for my system to rid itself of the Panacea…" He said _panacea_ like some people say_ toxic waste_. "I kinda vowed to never do the stuff… it's sort of cannibalism in some strange way, since the drug is extracted from my kind."

I brought my hand under my chin and remained quiet as Reed opened up to me. I admired him even more than ever as he stood in a puddle of his own blood, half-dressed and rubbing his temple as confusion oozed out. I suddenly couldn't help but smile at our current scene. "Technically, you've kept to your vow, because I injected you, you didn't do it to yourself."

The demon paused at his temple-rubbing before chuckling, and however small that chuckle was, it was real. I felt pride swell behind my sternum in making the man laugh.

"Technically, you're correct, for once." I fumed at the teasing bit he added, but the static ice in the mood had been broken. Within minutes, I briefed Reed on everything that led up to finding him on my living room floor, and he left to take care of the mess in his office, which probably included werewolves. My heart reenacted the beating it did when I thought I'd lost Reed for good, but on a lesser degree, when I thought about him fighting the remaining wolves. The only thing keeping me at ease was that Reed commanded me to stay and clean my own place, and the fact that Reed had plenty of drugs on him to take care of those wolves in a cinch. They seemed to react more sensitively to the panacea than vampires, and in a different degree than demons…

My brain started concocting ways I could help Reed with the predicament he was in while I cleaned the mess on the living room floor.

I felt guilty, because Caden threatened _him _when it was really _me_ who got him twisted up with the sheriff. There was also a small part of me that wanted to help the demon through his worries, regardless of my guilt; although the reasoning behind that was just plain crazy- it couldn't be that I felt _that_ emotion for Reed. That certain four-letter word I wouldn't let myself acknowledge…

I forced my thoughts away from that steep cliff and concentrated on ways to help Reed's shit situation, which was also mine as long as Reed owned my soul.

I started feeling the bruised shoulder from when that giant wolf tackled me earlier as I rolled up the bloodied rug in the middle of the living room. The poor rug was long passed cleaning, and blood stains are damn near impossible to get out of anything.

I carried the rug to the garbage can, then glanced down the street. After making sure the street was wolf-free, I noticed that all my neighbors had their garbage cans on the road for tomorrow's trash pick-up. I took the hint and moved my cans to the curb as well… Life was nice when you could depend on others to take care of things for you.

I stopped at that thought. _Letting others take care of things for you._

A light bulb lit up in my brain. I knew how to take care of Reed's problem.

* * *

**Reed's POV**

The demon exhaled a long, strained breath after dropping the heavy load in his arms to the ground. The half-ton of furry wolf mass didn't hit the floor gracefully, but Reed hadn't really expected it too. These beastly fuckers were heavy once the Panacea affected their brain and sent them into a coma-like high.

When Reed had returned to his office from Hayley's house, four wolves waited for him. This time, he'd been ready with a few vials of his drug, which he didn't hesitate to inject into the animals. Looks like essence of the wolf's enemy was their greatest weakness. Reed had injected, then snapped the necks of the four creatures waiting to ambush him for a second time. He hated wasting the goods, but the one-up on the beasts was progress for him. Hopefully the other wolves wouldn't want revenge for their fallen comrades.

Now, if he didn't find a way to keep the ever-prejudice Shepard away from him and Hayley... Caden was going to dispose of them. And Reed had no idea how he was going to pull _that _off.

Hayley.

She was a stead-fast human with such soft skin and a delicate laughter to match her serene, yet sad, smile.

The image of her naked, perfect body seeped steadily into his mind.

Before tonight, the thought of her had been somewhat of a burden. An obstacle, which needed to be dealt with. A nightmare with no resolution. However, after she completely surrendered herself to him, the thought of her was coupled with strong anticipation instead of dread.

Reed didn't just crave Hayley anymore… He _needed_ the connection with her body- of course, so his obsession could diminish and reduce to a level that was less destructive to his mind. Everything he felt right now seemed magnified compared to other nights of fixation. The Panacea must not have completely passed through his system.

A quick glance at his watch confirmed that it was only three hours passed injection… Another three to go before he was in the clear.

And who knew how long before he could trap Hayley under his body again. There was a chance that the girl would come to her senses and call whatever they had going on, off. But Reed hoped to both Satan in Hell and God in Heaven that she would continue down the lustful road to his body and let him have her. His obsessive fantasies of her hadn't gone away after he nearly died on her carpet. In fact, he couldn't wrap his head around anything _but_ her as he moved around his office, cleaning broken beakers and scattered papers.

It took half the night to clean the mess made by the wolves, but finally, around two in the morning, he finished. His watch finally said six hours passed injection, which meant he was good to go as far as drug-free went; yet his suggestive thoughts were still as potent as they'd been all evening.

The office was spotless and bare, just like he liked it to be, but his body felt hard and heavy as he leaned against a wall and slumped to the floor. Speaking of hard… his dick wouldn't take the hint that it wasn't receiving any attention for awhile and should go the hell away. Yet as soon as Reed cursed his own body to calm down, the erect organ twitched with expectation. What the hell?

At that moment, Hayley burst through his office door. "Reed, Reed! I know how we're going to get the Wolves and Shepard off your back!"

Okay, that wasn't perfect timing at all.

Reed looked the young woman up and down, just doing a quick check over her general appearance… Her hair looked wind-thrown and she was panting, which told him she ran here. She wore fresh clothes and, now that she was closer to him, he could smell her shampoo as clearly as if the scent were an expensive perfume. Her eyes were wide and shining with purpose… Perhaps she really did have a beneficial idea. "Hello, Hayley. How nice to see you this morning," Reed told her with a hint of sarcasm.

She only half-glared because he made her laugh first. "Seriously! It's brilliant, but it's only a fundamental idea."

"This should be entertaining."

"Okay, so you said Shepard hates demons who betray their kind. And it was easy to see that the wolf-men hated anyone who even associated with demons… So why not let the Wolves take out Shepard? They'll both be distracted and eliminate each other, while you get to continue on with your life."

Reed fought the urge to look at her swollen lips- lips he inflamed by kissing so roughly earlier- and let her logic sink into his head. Let his enemies eliminate each other?

"Hayley," he started. His face was blank. The girl nearly flinched, thinking that he would insult her stupidity. "That _is_ brilliant." He stood and took a few steady steps toward her as she grinned widely. "The details are sketchy, but I doubt it would be difficult to conjure up some framework to lead both groups together. After that, their destructive natures will take care of the rest."

"I know, right?" Her enthusiasm for his approval overflowed from her warm face and she all but skipped toward him. "I thought you would like the idea. It will solve everything!"

As soon as her rapture receded, their proximity was a mere inch apart. Her huge smile fell as she realized that she could clearly count the number of white lashes over his eyes, while he could see a slight sheen of moisture over her skin. She must have showered right before coming here… He wondered how much time she spent pampering herself for him. Now that he stood closer to her, he noticed how easy it would be to remove her uncomplicated clothing. That couldn't have been an accident on her part. Not after what_ almost_ happened on her couch.

"The plan will solve the problems we have with outside threats… but it won't solve this." Reed suddenly grabbed Hayley's wrist and pressed her palm firmly against his erection.

He had to control himself from jumping her right then as she gasped and instantly turned scarlet. Her bright eyes glazed over with reminiscent lust and she didn't fight where her palm rested. In fact, the little virgin grasped at his erection through his slacks, which earned her a throaty groan as he threw his head back. Reed didn't waste a moment to pull her close and smash his lips over hers.

Feeling just as brazen as her hand around him, soon the girl found herself backed into the silver dissection table through a clamor of nips and kisses. He took complete advantage of the table's edge and lifted her bum up so he could press himself firmly into her body. His arms circled around her back and pulled her petite form against his trim torso; their outlines and the height of the metal table seemed to merge them perfectly.

Her small hands wrapped around his neck and sifted through his white hair. His red eyes rolled back into his head as she tugged lightly at a few strands in the back. Another throaty groan emerged.

The demon decided that there wasn't enough noise coming from _her_ delicious mouth.

Reed's lips broke from Hayley's and attacked her neck after he yanked the back of her hair. His roughness was far from cruel- she actually let a broken moan out at his deliberate actions. Soon, his sucking and nipping along her throat caused vibrating groans to crawl out of her mouth. She was definitely good enough to devour right then and there.

"Hayley," Reed managed after a few more kisses.

"Yes?" the girl replied with some shock, clearly just ripped out of whatever trance she was trapped in.

"You still have clothes on." He said this as if it were an obvious problem. And considering the hardness in his pants, the problem needed quick solving. The man began to undo the buttons on his shirt and Hayley nodded her head before complying with his wishes. Her eyes were glazed over with passion and he imagined his were something of the same.

He wanted this- _no,_ he'd already established that he **needed** her. And there was a feared little voice in the back of his head that told him what he felt was more than an infatuation.

Not soon enough for him, they stood before one another in their primal, naked attire. Reed's roaming eyes found her every curve pleasing, but her wide, innocent gaze fixated on one part of his body. A certain part below the waist. Reed inwardly smiled and thanked God for creating a creature as pure as a virgin. If he'd ever doubted her purity before, he was now sure of her virginity as she stared at his manhood as if it were an alien. Though, for her, it was.

Reed briefly wondered if there had ever been one of his kind in this position before- a demon about to claim a virgin's** willing** gift. He couldn't remember if he'd heard of one in the old texts. How ironic was it that the one demon who was a disgrace to his race was about to make Hell's history book. (Not that he was about to blab to his groupies about how amazing sex with a virgin had been, granted if he were a social creature and had any friends).

Hayley leaned against the metal table, then jumped at its coldness, which made her breasts bounce playfully. Reed couldn't help but smirk.

"What?" Hayley asked defensively, moving her hands to cover herself.

He stepped forward and moved her arms so they were crossed behind her. He took a good, long look at her lovely shape and supple breasts before groaning with approval. "You look beautiful." The girl turned crimson again. Reed rewarded her with a sweet kiss on the lips. "You're sure about this?" he asked out of nowhere. His insides became twisted as he imagined her rejection. If she wanted to stop now… well, he contemplated rape. Still, he had to make sure she didn't want to back out of this.

There was a spark of determination in her eyes as she stared up at him. "Reed," she replied steadily, and gathered one of his large hands up to kiss. "I am _so _sure. I want this, badly." As she spoke, she boldly guided his fingers in between her legs.

He touched the softness of her core and heard her approval… and then he was lost to the rational world.

With newfound ardor, Reed lifted the girl effortlessly again on top of the dissection table. He kissed her fiercely while stroking her slit amorously, which made Hayley practically scream with pleasure. The only time he broke their faces apart was to lay the girl flat on the table and mount her properly. Before she could fully realize the importance of what he was going to take from her, Reed slammed his mouth over hers and thrust himself inside the heavenly place a demon could hardly fathom.

Reed felt like he'd been sent on another high as he was enveloped by his lover below him. Hayley, on the other hand, mercilessly screamed into Reed's mouth as her innocence tore. While he felt immense pleasure, he could tell she hardly expected this magnitude of _pain_. Her face contorted awfully as she writhed beneath him.

"Ow! God… Reed…" she whined after he broke the kiss.

The demon had every intention to be the caring lover who was going to guide her through this inevitable pain, except…

As soon as Reed shoved himself inside her, all_ humane _thought was literally halted. Reed's crimson eyes darkened as only one thought surfaced inside his brain: _Finish_.

The lost demon lifted Hayley's leg over his shoulder, which added to both pleasure and pain. The girl arched her back as the discomforted grew and pain lessened, but no matter how she felt, Reed rocked into her without care of her desires or comforts. He thrust into her at his heart's content, not her command.

He was so…

_Not himself._

"Reed!" By the end of the intrusion, Hayley found some likeness to the pleasure that Reed had given her before, and Reed finished with a grunt. Once he was done, just like the desire in his head wanted him to be, he pulled out and removed himself from the table.

His dark crimson eyes lightened again to their red, but after the sex, Reed felt different.

He felt…

Empowered.

"Reed?" Hayley asked, her voice shaking and scared. She'd obviously expected something completely different for her first time.

"Forgot to tell you, the first time always sucks for you. It'll feel better next time." His response sounded so… detached.

"Oh. Okay," Hayley replied in a quiet voice.

"You probably want a hot shower after that. Allow me." Reed snapped his fingers, and Hayley was suddenly back in her own bed, in her own house. If Reed had bothered to transport with her, he would have been able to see her glistening tears run down her cheeks.


	16. This Is Hell

**A/N:** xxdarknessxfallsxx here! Swan's Catastrophe and I want to thank you so much for the reviews, everybody! My favorite response was from jamesstarkgirlfriend, who many of you shared the exact same idea with. XD As I assured some of you, there is a reason for Reed's madness and it's not _entirely_ his fault, (but he can still be blamed very easily). For those of you hoping this chapter is going to be Reed's make-everything-right-again time… Well, you'll just have to read to find out. **WARNING:** Never try what Hayley does in this chapter if you're feeling down in the dumps. It's a good way to do something you'll regret, like accidental suicide.

Otherwise, enjoy~

* * *

_**Chapter 16: This Is Hell**_

All the passions of your youth  
Are tranquillized and tamed  
You may think it looks familiar  
Though you may know it by another name  
This is hell, this is hell.

_This is Hell, Elvis Costello_

_

* * *

_

The pain was unbearable. That thought was at the forefront of everything else on my mind. Sure, I knew it would hurt but I hadn't known Reed would be so damn ruthless about it. The selfish beast. I should've assumed he'd do something like this; I mean, that is what demons do. First, they lure you in (contract), then they make you trust them (confiding secrets), and finally, they rip away your innocence (quite sadistically) and send you back to your room after acting like a complete asshole.

Demons.

Can't live with them, Can't gather the strength or courage to rid the world of the damn things either.

So, after taking a long, hot shower which didn't relieve my inner pain in any way, I settled onto my couch, Lucy beside me, with a large carton of Ben & Jerry's on my lap and did what any other girl would do. I put in some romantic comedies and laughed, and then cried, because no living man is like the ones in the films: tall dark and handsome? Maybe. But I remember Ted Bundy being all of those things, and that didn't work out well for anyone, especially not the girls. Gnawing my lip, I relayed the events of the past twenty four hours in my head; mostly, I think in some sort of sick ritual of self-torture. I mean sure, the sex, if anyone could call it that, was consensual… but if I'd told Reed that I wanted him to stop, I don't think he would have.

It was the look in his eyes as it happened. It wasn't human at all, and it terrified me more than the pain had. And afterwards, he'd been so- so _cold_. Like I didn't matter at all. And I couldn't stop the tiny voice in my head from saying otherwise. Maybe that had been his plan all along; play nice to get what he wanted, and then- and then, nothing.

Turning away from that rather depressing thought, I squirmed uncomfortably on the couch. Jesus, it felt like no matter how I stood or walked or sat, I hurt no matter what. What the fuck had he done to me?-

A small whimper escaped my throat and I began my walk upstairs, in search of pain medicine.

Slowly, the '_this is unbearable'_ thought was overshadowed by a loud, inner me, screaming '_this is hell!'_ I felt inclined to agree.

Luckily, I found some heaven in a bottle inside my mom's medicine cabinet. I'd already tried Advil, which obviously hadn't done shit, now it was on to the more hardcore pain relievers. The ones my mom's doctor had prescribed with her chemo. The good stuff.

I skimmed the warning label; made sure I was taking the right dosage and all that, and then popped back the cap and swallowed two tablets dry.

To say that the things worked immediately would have been an understatement. First, all the pain went away, including the pain I hadn't even known I'd been feeling. My body was light. Free.

Then, I started to go numb, lost my motor skills and collapsed onto the floor. I knew that I should have been worried, but felt too good to let it bother me.

And then,_ then,_ I was just floating- on a cloud- in the center of the universe. And the stars put on a lightshow, just for me, and they made me laugh. And I floated away.

Pain free, for however long this lasted.

* * *

_**Reed's POV**_

Reed worked the graveyard, feeling more demonic than he had in centuries. He wasn't sure if he liked the change or not, but he wasn't complaining so far. He'd gotten what he wanted, Hayley spread her legs for him like a good little girl, and ever since, he'd felt more powerful than when he'd first ended up on this god forsaken planet. Back when the women who held themselves with such grace and dignity would crawl at his feet, marveling over his unearthly beauty. He'd be lying if he said it wasn't a good feeling.

After he'd finished his rounds, dealing out all the Panacea that his costumers demanded, he returned to his workroom, and began to tidy up. When the demon walked next to the silver dissection table, he noted the bit of virgin blood still staining the top of the shiny surface. With an arrogant smirk, Reed wondered how Hayley was doing right about now. Probably still healing from the night before, he assumed, his smirk widening to a sick smile. Sweet Hayley… He'd have to remember to thank her for his transition of sorts- from the sorry excuse for a demon, to the confident creature he felt like now. Just as Reed was about to settle down for the night, the ground beneath him gave out, and he was met with a very familiar fall to a familiar dimension.

He was being summoned.

The descent wasn't nearly as long and as painful as the one that first sent him to earth, but long and painful enough to force him to remember the feeling. Reed could feel his human nature receding further into himself the deeper he fell, and didn't know how to stop it, or if he even wanted too. Soon enough, he was back on solid ground, but he wasn't in the human realm. The walls encircling him were made of molten lava, the ceiling above of ice; the four demons in front of him were made of pure **sin**.

The demon elders.

Reed raised his eyebrows, their sudden summoning piquing his interest.

"You called for me?" He found it much easier to sound bored now, than whenever he had been with Hayley.

"You've raised some intrigue among us," Lilith, the first of their kind, replied. She was the only horned demoness, and the underworld's most successful succubus. To Reed, though, she was just plain creepy. The only woman he knew that could pull off wearing a giant boa snake and nothing else.

"Oh?" Reed said, coming to stand in front of the council. "How so?"

"To start, managing to take a human's virginity without using force," commented Samael. He was probably the ugliest of the bunch. His head resembled giant goat, and several scars were knotted through his entire body, like tattoos.

Reed stared at the elders and the heinous room they dwelled within and felt new rage stem within his chest. They had all loved their god, the God that even humans knew and loved; the four of the demon elders had once worshipped him, adored him- and look what He had reduced them to. Reed had absolutely no doubt in his mind that from this point on, no matter what the elders said, he would live like a real demon. The origin of the demon race was said to have began when a few angels were banished from heaven for being "unholy."

_Well, _Reed thought, _I'll be the unholiest of them all. I'll give them all- the humans, Wolves and vampires- a reason to call me a demon._

His red eyes sparkled with delight.

With a bored sigh, and a pompous smirk, Reed eyed the council. "Oh, believe me, there was plenty of _force_ involved- just not the kind that my silly little human could recognize."

The council laughed at his innuendo, no strangers to the mind games that Reed played, and nodded at him approvingly.

"Well," Lilith began, "as is custom for the deflowering of a willing virgin, the council is in the position to grant you a demand. What will it be?"

Samael leaned forward, growing eager. "You could always unleash another plague," the demon said. "The one we set off a few centuries back seemed to work well."

Abbadon, who'd been uncharacteristically quiet during this entire exchange, shook his head.

"Been done too much. How about-"

"What Reed decides is not for you to choose," Lilith snapped at the men. When observing the small display of dominance, Reed let a savage smirk curl his lips.

Lilith raised incredibly orange eyes to him. "I assume that you've made your decision."

"Yes, I believe I have."

"And what is it, what do you want?" Abaddon asked.

"Control," Reed demanded simply. The forth demon, Amy, who hadn't spoken at all, smiled devilishly and fixed Reed with a small look of admiration.

"Clever boy," she said in her soprano-high voice. "It appears there's hope for you yet."

"There's no hope for me," Reed said blandly. "There's no hope for any of us."

"O Jesus," Lilith groaned. "You're over seven hundred years old and still act like an angst-ridden seventeen-year-old."

Reed shrugged. "I'm still the one who scored a virgin."

Lilith raised her eyebrows, her razor-sharp nails click-clacking against the stone table at which the elders sat. "Is that a challenge, boy?"

"It wasn't meant as one, but I'd be more than willing to put my money where my mouth is if you accept," Reed said honestly, crossing his arms as if he were getting bored.

Lilith's orange eyes flared. "I might take you up on that," she said wistfully. "Until then, demand granted. Return to earth. We look forward to seeing you down here again sometime."

"Not too soon, I hope," Reed replied, glancing around. "I truly do hate this place."

"This is hell," Samael said gruffly. "You're supposed to hate it."

"Try living down here for seven centuries," Abaddon muttered.

Lilith rolled her eyes and turned to glare at Reed. "You haven't even been down here for ten minutes and already, they're behaving like adolescents."

"I'm just as upset about my continued presence here as you are," Reed said cutely. Lilith flicked a straw-colored hair from her face and snapped her fingers…

…

Reed appeared back in his workroom, and he felt _incredible_. Incredible, but starving. Without giving a second thought to the matter, he snapped his fingers and thought of a highly populated city with lots of dark alleys- where human life waited to be devoured. Damn- it was good to be a demon again.

* * *

_**Hayley's POV**_

I could tell that my high was beginning to wear off. For one, the soreness between my legs was slowly but steadily returning. And for another, I began to realize that my "universe" of stars only consisted of the ceiling lamp above me; apparently I had been staring at it for the past hour or so, and I was beginning to worry that my eyesight would ever quite be the same.

It was nice while it lasted, and I even contemplated taking a few more pills, but the bottle specifically stated that no more than two every four hours were allowed. Damn rules.

Forcing my eyelids shut to dispel the bright blue shadow of the light bulb that had become imprinted in my pupil, I let out a deep breath.

"Hayley?" a familiar, yet detached voice called, wrenching me from the rest of my high. "What are you doing?"

I winced as the pain and soreness returned with full-force, and at the sound of his voice no less.

"What does it look like? I'm writhing around on the floor in pain," I replied snappishly.

I hadn't opened my eyes, but if I had, I knew I'd see Reed cocking his head to the side as he stared at me with raised eyebrows.

"Are you _high_?" he demanded.

"I was- until you showed up. I needed _something_ to relieve the pain, and Advil wasn't cutting it," I said shortly. After struggling to find the least uncomfortable way to sit up, and failing miserably, I threw my arm over my head and continued sulking and wallowing in self pity on the floor.

"Oh for god's sake," I heard Reed growl, and then felt his arms snaking around my waist and pulling me from the floor. I clung to his shoulders after I was upright and opened my eyes to stare into his red ones. Only somehow, Reed looked different.

Before, he had just oozed danger and menace. Now, it seemed as if all of those things were overshadowed by power. His presence was overwhelming, his body felt strong and conquering while his eyes were full of a rich intensity. I gaped at him and felt worse than when I stared at that damn light bulb, because he seemed almost _god-like _in that moment. And, regretfully, it made me all the more attracted to him.

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

I needed to get out of his grasp and away from my confounding feelings for him.

However, when he stared right back at me with cool and appraising eyes, my desire to get away evaporated. The male silently brushed a stray strand of hair from my face, and I found my head _could not_ move away from his. His hand swept across my collarbone, to my shoulder, and then down my arm, raising goose bumps in its path. I shivered, but found myself frozen in place, frozen in his stare; unable to look away, and unable to move.

He raised his hand again, this time grazing it across my jaw with tentative, harmless strokes as he watched my reactions with barely contained curiousness.

What the hell was going on? I couldn't move, I could only stand as he studied me like a scientist would study a lab rat before a particularly unpleasant experiment.

"Oh, Sparky, what am I gonna do with you…" The last word trailed off with evident suggestion. Reed murmured his words against my throat before placing a chaste kiss on my lips. I found myself leaning into him without thought, and whimpering when Reed pulled away; a pleased smirk set on his lips. I didn't know what it meant, but it frightened me, almost as much as how I was acting right now frightened me.

"What do you _want_ to do with me?" I asked, not even realizing that the words were falling from my mouth with so much lure until it was too late. I'm pretty sure I was batting my lashes at him, too.

Sweet mother Mary, I was still high, wasn't I? _That_ was the only explanation for the way I was acting, right?

Reed raised his eyebrows, red eyes gleaming, and I could swear that just beneath the crimson surface I could see flames flickering. Hellish flames.

_Reed, what happened to you_? I wanted to say it, I **tried **to say it, but the words wouldn't come up, and my mouth wouldn't open. I just stood there, waiting for Reed's reply to my previous question, acting like I wasn't completely fucking freaked out about this right now.

Reed stroked my jaw again, gently, which immediately set me on edge.

"Oh, I'm sure we can think of something," he drawled, making a lazy trail of kisses along my throat.

I gulped, trying to move away again, but to no avail.

I'm Hayley Kindler, and I really wish that _this_ was not happening.


	17. Trouble Is A Friend

_**A/N: Hello readers, and Happy Holidays to everyone! In the spirit of things, xxdarknessxfallsxx and I deliver to you, another chapter. **_

_**As always: Read, Enjoy, Review**_

_**Much love,**_

_**Swan's Catastrophe**_

_**

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**_

_**Chapter 17: Trouble Is A Friend**_

_Trouble he will find you no matter where you go, oh oh  
No matter if you're fast, no matter if you're slow, oh oh  
The eye of the storm or the cry in the mourn, oh oh  
You're fine for a while but you start to lose control  
_

_He's there in the dark, he's there in my heart_  
_He waits in the wings, he's gotta play a part_  
_Trouble is a friend, yeah trouble is a friend of mine, oh oh!_  
_- Trouble Is A Friend, Lenka_

_

* * *

_

__

I watched Reed's hand as it slid up my jaw, cradling my face in his firm grip. There was a flash in his crimson eyes, and then, before I knew what was happening, his lips were crushed against mine in a hungry kiss. I tried to fight him off, I tried to hate what he was doing, but the more resistant I was, the more I _wanted_ it. What the hell was he doing to me? I raised my arms to fend him off, or push him away; really, anything that would create some distant between us, but my arms weren't listening to me. Instead, as if they had a mind of their own, they wrapped themselves around Reed's neck, pulling him closer to me, and my fingers disappeared within the snowy locks of his hair. Reed growled low and deep against my shoulder and then began to nibble playfully at my throat. And I let him! As if I were in any kind of state to- well, actually, the soreness between my legs had disappeared as soon as Reed had wrapped me in his arms. I stared up into the demon's eyes as he shoved me against the wall and continued his attack on my throat and collar bone. He really was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen, and it was a wonder how I could think that about him after everything he'd done- but he was. And I knew it was too late for denial at this point, his hands, after all, were currently roaming my body freely and I wasn't making any move to stop them.

I was falling in love with the bastard.

But to Reed, I doubted I was much more than a distraction. Yet, I still let him touch me and kiss me, and make me believe that he actually cared, because that was enough for now. I let out a breathy sigh as Reed's tongue traced a particularly sensitive area of my throat, and my grip on his shoulder tightened. Soon, all thoughts were lost- save the thoughts of Reed, and what he was doing to me.

It wasn't long before Reed was stripping me down in my bedroom, his lips hardly ever leaving my skin and my hands roaming all over his toned chest under his shirt. My mind swam in confusion and lust, the two fighting for which was more powerful in the moment. Cognitive thought didn't even have a chance to reason with me as Reed's body touched mine... However, when the demon roughly shoved me onto my bedsheets and took time to strip himself down, my head spun.

My bare stomach rested gently on the soft comforter, with my legs slightly parted as I heard Reed's clothes shuffling only a few feet behind me. _What are you doing?_ My mind screamed. I felt the hot-and-ready feeling between my legs as I heard Reed's pants drop. But I also felt fear, and it made my bones shake.

I knew_ exactly_ where this was leading. The question was, did I want it?

After our first experience, my rational mind said _hell no_! But a deeper, more naïve part of me listened to Reed's rough gropes and intoxicating kisses showered over my skin, and I wanted him.

Maybe I _was_ a masochist.

Or maybe- and this was a crazy maybe- I wasn't in control of myself. Somehow, when I saw the flames in Reed's eyes, I knew it wasn't his _burning_ love for me. Perhaps it was some sort of power he had to control my body. Because I sure as hell hadn't come down from my high without my hatred for how Reed treated me our first time- which was like dirt. I looked at my shaking hands and realized that I _didn't_ want to go through that degrading experience again. I didn't want this!

I flipped my body to lay on my back and snapped my legs together when I felt Reed's nude weight shift onto the bed with me. I tried to cover my breasts and make my disinterest for Reed crystal clear, but the man's smirk and teasing fingers running down my leg dissolved my hatred just as quickly as in the bathroom a moment ago.

And I was back to wanting him all over again.

"Just accept it," he whispered coolly. I stared into his bright, crimson eyes, pleading with my own, but it was pointless. My lover had total control. And deep down there was a part of me that accepted that- liked it, even. My entire body relaxed underneath him as he pulled my legs apart again.

Definitely a masochist.

"As I said before, the second time should be better. I'll make sure it is, just for you." His voice was like melted chocolate, oozing deliciously into my brain, coating my senses with nothing but him. Before I had another rational thought, he had thrust himself inside me.

The only thing worse than the ardor I put into the encounter... was that Reed was right. The sex was better than the first time. When I realized this, I wanted nothing more than to cry.

* * *

_**Reed's POV**_

Outside of Hayley's house, Reed rolled his shoulders to work out the kinks, and a devilish smirk turned up his lips. This was getting fun; Reed found himself wondering why he hadn't done this centuries ago, although, he doubted any of the women from back then would have enraptured him as fully as Hayley had, but still…he could've at least tried. He began a lazy stroll towards the last known territory of werewolves near the city, appearing directly outside of an old and decrepit Victorian house. The porch and most of the house itself was rotted through by termites and years of neglect, the grass which had grown into a small jungle was peaking through holes in the porch steps, and weeds decorated the entire property. Most of the shutters were hanging precariously by the corners of their windows. And the windows themselves were either broken, or boarded up by a thin sheet of wood. In other words, it was the cliché "haunted house" type. With a disinterested glance at the upstairs windows- one of the moth-eaten curtains had twitched- Reed stepped up to the front door and entered the house without knocking. His plan for being stealthy was foiled when the door ripped from its hinges in his grip with a loud shriek and crumpled into several large pieces of rotted wood on the floor. Reed cursed under his breath, eyes scanning the area for movement. He took another cautious step inside, his eyes quickly adjusting to the complete pitch blackness that seemed to lie over the entire house, like a blanket. The smell that wafted up Reed's nostrils was horrendous: Mold, dust, dirt, three week old corpse, pee…and other bodily excrements, all topped off by the stench of wet dog. Disgusting.

He was in the right place; that was for sure. With a small sigh, Reed began his inspection of the premises. The dogs were either out chasing cars on the freeway (he could only hope), or they were hiding somewhere in this house.

Opting for a casual approach, Reed whistled loudly, the sound reverberating through the house. As expected, something shifted in the darkness and moved forward. Reed couldn't be sure what it was, and then the shadowed figure moved into the light cast by the open doorway and he rolled his eyes in annoyance. Three, maybe four werewolves crept towards him, teeth barred and muzzles pulled back to show him that they were pretty angry. Reed felt his instincts kick in, and before he knew what was happening, he had one of the wolves in a headlock, and was about to twist his hip just enough so that the wolf's neck would-

_Stop_._ It's not the time for this_.

Like flipping a switch, Reed shoved the wolf away from him before he did something stupid, and leaned casually against a rotting and smelly wall.

"Calm down," Reed demanded coolly, wiping non-existent dirt from his shirt sleeve. "I didn't come here to kill you, and you obviously can't kill me, so sit down and stop those pathetic growling noises, I have a proposition to make."

The wolf closest to Reed began to shift and change in appearance. Soon, it was a grotesque half-man, half animal-thing, with a long, canine snout and a human face. Its back was curved and hunched, and its arms were bent at odd angles; fingers long, and spindly, with talon-like claws.

For the first time tonight Reed found himself surprised. Why hadn't the idiot just turned fully into a human again? When he repeated his question aloud, the wolves made a hacking, gurgling sound that Reed assumed to be a laugh.

"Look outside," the wolf-hybrid-thing rasped in a wet growl. "It's a full moon. We're unable to return to our human form."

Reed narrowed his eyes. "Of course, how silly of me to forget about a curse completely unrelated to me."

The wolf growled, taking a threatening step forward.

"And what makes you think that we would lower ourselves to help with a curse completely unrelated to ourselves," The wolf said in that irritatingly grating voice. Reed couldn't stand it; it was like listening to sandpaper being scraped against dirt. He grit his teeth, eyes snapping defiantly to the wolf's.

"Curse? You're the cursed one. I'm completely fine." Reed replied.

"So what would you call being cast from heaven to spend eternity on earth? Banishment?" The wolf coaxed.

"Vacation." Reed replied, flashing a dazzling smile.

The wolf hacked a laugh again before flashing Reed a look that said:_ well, get to it already. What do you want?_

"We share a common enemy." Reed explained. "And though I may work for the vampires, I do not particularly like them, and I wouldn't be too upset if they simply disappeared from the area, and the wolves took over the territory.

This confession seemed to peak the wolf's interest, and if he'd had identifiable eyebrows, Reed was sure that they would have been raised.

"You are serious?" The wolf responded. "You would let the wolves take over this territory?"

"Dead serious." Reed said smugly. "The vampire sheriff and the rest of his coven are meeting me at the cemetery on Tuesday. That gives you four days to make your decision. I'll be in contact-"

"No need." interrupted the werewolf. "We'll be there."

"Excellent." Reed said, a small smirk creeping across his lips. "Then I'll see you there."

…

….

Twenty minutes later and Reed had gotten much of the same response from Sheppard and his men. So far, Hayley's plan was working perfectly. He'd have to thank the little minx properly; if things went as planned, she would end up saving both of their asses.

Of course, she was the one who had gotten them into the disaster in the first place, but that was neither here nor there.

Feeling the beginning twitches of hunger, Reed headed for the city, whistling a lazy tune and thinking about what he was in the mood for…blonde, red-head, maybe a nice raven?

Reed pushed away the errant thought that reminded him of how he hadn't drained a brunette since he'd met Hayley.

He told himself that it was irrelevant. And that none of them tasted as good as she did. It didn't matter anyway, he'd already spotted his lady of the night.

A cute blonde, with a sweet smile, big breasts, and large green eyes. Perfect.

Slapping on a charming smile, Reed approached her, and began searching for dark and isolated areas to dispose of the body after he was finished with her.

What an interesting night this was turning out to be.

* * *

_**Hayley's POV**_

Once Reed left, I found myself in the now familiar corner of the couch; sulking, a cup of hot cocoa in one hand and a pillow clutched to my chest in the other. This, it seemed, was becoming a much repeated cycle. Reed would come over, some sort of sexual stuff would ensue, and then I'd be left to stuff my face with chocolate coated snacks and wallow in self-hatred.

Damn him.

Him and his stupid handsome looks, and his stupid charming wit topped off with enough arrogance to fill a bus, and his _stupid goddamn lips_. I groaned and tossed the pillow at the TV as if it would toss away my thoughts of Reed as well. I stood up and stretched, wincing slightly where I was still sore and made my way to the kitchen to put my empty cup into the dishwasher.

It was times like this when I'd usually turn to my mother for guidance- even if she didn't understand what I was going through, hearing her voice as she tried to soothe me was enough. I had called the hospital earlier, and they told me that what was happening was nothing less than a miracle. They would be keeping her for a few more days for observation, but her cancer was gone- she was healthy. The thought almost sounded too good to be true, I would be getting my mother back. And no matter how much I despised Reed at this current moment in time, I still could never hate him. He was giving me what I wanted most in the world. I had just cut myself a slice of chocolate cake, when a knock on the door interrupted my eating binge. With a frown, I walked to the front door and threw it open impatiently.

I don't know who I had been expecting but it certainly hadn't been a six foot tall, dark haired, blue eyed vampire sheriff.

"Hello beautiful," Caden smirked "Is your demon here?"

_Well,_ I thought to myself, _even if tonight hadn't been…the best, it was certainly turning out to be interesting._


	18. Help, I'm Alive

**A/N: **xxdarknesssfallsxx here. Deepest apologies that we've taken forever and a day to update. Swan's Catastrophe and I have just started the most important (not to mention stressful) semester of school for each of us- for me, I'm on my LAST semester of high school (Class of 2011 ftw)! Unfortunately, the public education system likes to monopolize our time, but we shall do our best to procrastinate and beat the system (heaven forbid we actually just get schoolwork out of the way first) and update more often within our busy schedules. Enjoy the update~!

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**Chapter 18: Help I'm Alive**

_Help, I'm alive, my heart keeps beating like a hammer  
Hard to be soft, tough to be tender  
Come take my pulse, the pace is on a runaway train  
I get wherever I'm going  
I get whatever I need  
While my blood's still flowing  
And my heart still beating like a hammer._

_-Help I'm Alive, Metric_

_

* * *

_

For a few moments, all I could do was stare. The world seemed like it developed some serious lag compared to the moment I currently stood in. I was holding the front door open to Caden, the potentially-dangerous vampire who held my and Reed's life in his hand, and I had no idea what I could say to him that wouldn't sound totally stupid or off-topic like, 'No, Reed isn't here, he just left after his daily, casual fuck. Dunno where he scampered off too.'

I guess my gaping mouth seemed to answer the vampire's question for me, however.

"Guess it's good he's not here. It means he's actually working for a change," the smooth vampire teased as he strode passed me. I made no motion to invite him in, but can you really argue with an incredibly strong and dangerous creature like him and expect to get anywhere? Plus, he's kind of funny, in a super-menacing kind of way. "Make that two bonuses for is tending to my bidding while I get to enjoy the company of the lovely_ human_ assistant."

His compliment lost its luster as his eyes gleamed with something that was a mix between seductive and life-threatening.

My voice couldn't find the way out of my mouth until I turned away and led the vampire into the kitchen. Usually, I wanted Reed to come back when I found myself alone with Caden. However, with how Reed had been acting lately… I couldn't decide who was the lesser of two evils. Sexually abusive demon and lover, or vampire with a license to do whatever the hell he wanted? Glancing at the ungodly attractiveness of Caden, which was similar to how Reed's features worked, I figured that I may as well chance an encounter with the vampire sheriff; besides, could he do anything to make me feel worse about myself than I already did?

I reached up to the cabinet to grab a mug, and then pulled out the grounds for the coffee maker. "Can I get you anything to drink?" I asked, purely on the hospitable reflex my mother raised me to have. I didn't actually think about the context of the question until Caden replied.

"AB negative, please."

I stopped pouring the coffee grounds when I realized exactly _who-_ or _what _I was talking to. A vampire, duh! The recognition actually made me laugh out loud- something I hadn't done since the night Reed started being a _complete_ jerk.

"Sorry, we just ran out of blood. Coffee, maybe?" I told him through half-chuckles.

My cheeky comeback reminded me of my conversations with Reed. Each one was a battle of wits, and whoever had the cleverest retort won. Now, however, picturing the demon's face clearly brought me straight back to the recent events. To my recent self-loathing. And recent tears. I couldn't stop laughing from Caden's nonchalant remark, and the more I laughed, the more tears I choked on. It was like the more I tried to enjoy myself, the more misery I felt.

Why couldn't I get that bastard out of my head?

My hand started shaking until the mug I held clattered against the counter. I couldn't stop from feeling a mixture of shame, sadness and embarrassment because 1) I was about to cry in front of a powerful vampire, 2) If I couldn't hold it together for more than five minutes, it meant I was as pathetic as I felt, and 3) Everything I said or did brought me back to Reed, the reason for all this anguish. My body tensed as I tried to hold myself steady and not break down, but the more I fought my emotions, the harder it became. There was a tight knot in my throat that felt like a dam, and at any moment the damn thing was bound to break. I gnashed my teeth, determined to keep quiet.

Trembling uncontrollably, my knees gave out and I collapsed on the floor as the dam broke. A regrettably familiar warmth rushed to my cheeks as tears spilled and the pressure in my throat was alleviated with sorrow.

At some point I slammed my fist against the floor because I was so angry and disgusted with myself!

I knew, even though I was crying, if Reed were to walk through that door _right now_ and whisper a few sweet words, I'd probably end up back in this very same place- or worse. Feeble, worthless moron! And I was nothing else right now. I'd almost forgot that I wasn't alone, but _that _could explain why I felt humiliated on top of it all.

Caden's slick, polished shoes appeared inches in front of my knuckles, but I didn't look up to see his facial expression. It was probably amusement, or revulsion- that last thing I expected was compassion.

"What's wrong, Hayley?"

I mentally gasped at his concern, because my breath was busy hyperventilating. When I tried to cower away, the vampire actually bent down to my level and made me raise my chin to him. "Answer my question," he commanded in an uncharacteristically gentle tone.

I could only manage to moan one word that would apparently explain everything: "_Reed_."

Caden prodded no further, but instead reached out to pick me up into his arms. Considering my emotional state and physical power, I couldn't protest, and merely got carried. The vampire's intentions were unclear, but the previous time I was injured (although I hardly counted this as injured), he took care of me and called it 'protecting his assets.' Whether Caden cared about me or was just looking out for his accessories, he provided some form of comfort I needed in this harsh situation. In a weird way, only the care of a male was going to make me feel better, since a male was what did this to me; even if the vampire holding me into his arms wasn't human, but then again, neither was Reed.

I wrapped my arms around Caden's neck and opened my tear-filled eyes. I was surprised to see that we were walking down the sidewalk instead of to my room or somewhere a little closer. "Where are we going?"

"You need a place to be alone, where Reed can't find you… Am I right?"

I nodded against the vampire's neck and tried to curl more into myself at the mention of_ his_ name. In that moment, I trusted the sheriff enough to let him take me anywhere. I was still unsure at this point, however, if whether or not the trust was earned.

_**Reed's POV**_

After the demon had his fill of human life for the evening, he traveled back to his office to rest. Hayley's plan to eliminate all of their enemies went over smoothly, but to keep Caden's suspicion away, he _and Hayley_ had to act like it was a normal, regular day in the Panacea-dealing business. He had to keep dealing the steroid-infused drug to vampires at the sheriff's whims, but only for three more days.

Three days until he was free- free from Caden and free from exploiting his own kind for the enjoyment of another race.

Three days until Hayley's contract with him would have been fulfilled, too.

But the demon didn't want to fiddle with that subject until the time came. Besides, he had an immense ability to control, now. He could always command her to run away with him. The demon smirked at the thought. Having Hayley to be his toy forever didn't sound half bad. They'd travel around the world, doing whatever they pleased whenever they wanted. He couldn't see himself getting tired of her, either, like he did with every other female.

Except, wouldn't she miss her mother?

Reed's smirk fell. Where the hell had _that_ empathetic thought come from? Who cared if Hayley missed her mother so long as he held up his part of the contract to save her mother from cancer? Reed wanted Hayley with him after this whole ordeal was over, end of discussion. The demon snarled and felt disgusted with himself; he still felt a small amount of benevolence for humans- something he'd developed over the years of living among them.

The cracks that the human part of him managed to crawl through needed to be filled, lest he start crying over Hayley's "owies," like her broken heart. With a small sigh, Reed hopped up onto the table and reclined into a comfortable position, staring up at the overhead light.

"No matter what happens," Reed whispered to the empty room around him. "I'll be in control."


	19. No Way Back

_**A/N: Hey guys! So, we know we freaked a bunch of you out what with not updating for several months, and we feel bad- so we both busted our asses, and got this chapter finished last night so we could post it up. It's longer, and hopefully makes up for the long wait? Maybe? Yes? No?**_

_**Anywhoo, we'll have something posted up again soon. As always,**_

_**Read, Enjoy, Review,**_

_**- Swan's Catastrophe**_

_**

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_**Chapter 19: No Way Back**_

_I'm stuck, I'm out of luck  
And trying to talk my way out of this  
Even fog lifts, but not this  
No, not this_

There's no way you're coming back  
There's no way you're coming back  
Babe, I know you never leave without  
Your gun ...

_-No Way Back, 8mm_

_

* * *

_

I wasn't really sure what happened after Caden carried me out of my home, to the "somewhere I could be alone," that he mentioned. I must have fallen asleep in his arms because when I woke up, I was…well; I didn't really know where I was. I lay on a big red sofa that sat in front of a blazing fire place. The room was large and open, felt very modern and looked liked a professional interior designer ran through it, which was very unlike anything I'd seen in the small town I lived in.

"Ah, so sleeping beauty awakens," came a familiar, smooth voice from directly behind me. I turned to find Caden leaning against the back of the sofa, cool eyes locked on mine.

"Where are we?" I asked between a yawn. Slowly, I stretched my limbs and stood up, staring at the beauty of the place.

"My personal residence- in the city. It's a ways away from your small town," Caden replied. The smoother operator walked around the couch to stand in front of me. "I thought you could use the time away to think things over, and get through…whatever you need to get through."

My eyes narrowed in suspicion, but I nodded in understanding. Could this really be the same man that blackmailed a certain demon and I?

"That was generous," I said softly.

I felt even more miserable as I realized that fact that I found a vampire who was _threatening my life_ to comfort me now- of all times. Caden shrugged dismissively and headed for what I assumed the front door. I turned from him to look behind me- then gave a small gasp of surprise.

He wasn't lying when he said we were in the city. Behind me, the entire back wall was made of glass, and it overlooked the bright skyline of the city. The cityscape looked just like something I'd seen on a fancy desktop background for a computer, and nothing I'd seen in real life. No stars, though. I turned back to the vampire to see him smirking arrogantly.

"I'm glad you like the place," he said with pride, then turned back for the door. "I have no food here, and at some point you'll be hungry, so I'm going grocery shopping. It shouldn't take long, but make yourself at home."

And then he was gone.

I stared at the empty penthouse in confusion. What the hell was I supposed to do? I'm in the house of the so-called enemy, alone, and I have free reign. What would Reed- damn him- want me to do right now?

Snoop?

Play it cool?

Order a bunch of movies and charge it to Caden's credit card?

Instead, I opted to just explore the place. I mean, it's massive and beautiful- and the cracks were probably filled with little vampire secrets.

The walls were a crisp, clean white and the tile floors matched. Everywhere I looked, I saw fabulous modern trinkets or ancient, old antiques. The thing was, even though they all clashed, it all fit somehow.

One especially interesting artifact, that rested over the mantle, stole my attention because if it's fierce nature. It was a sizeable jaguar carved out of a black, polished stone; the teeth in the snarling mouth looked deadly and its eyes caught some of the firelight enough to make them dance. A resemblance of how Caden must have felt as a vampire? Perhaps. The statue looked like a respectable foe, indeed.

While admiring, I almost missed the small key that rested on the jaguar's stone tongue.

Feeling curious but moving on, I walked past the kitchen and down a narrow hallway. There was a fancy bathroom to the right, and further down the hall, a bedroom and an office. I looked around surreptitiously, just to make sure I was really alone, before I flicked on the light in the office and opened the door wide. A giant mahogany desk filled most of the space in the room- and that was exactly where I went. At first, I simply perused the papers that were scattered on top of the desk and in the top drawers with mild interest, but soon my search for some dirt began in earnest.

It didn't matter if my plan for getting rid of Caden, the wolves and Shepard was fool-proof, it's always good to have the sure upper hand.

So, I searched the drawers for anything that mentioned me or Reed, or Panacea. After shifting aimlessly through a few papers, I was soon stressing myself out.

I had no idea _what_ I was looking for, or _where_ to find it… Or if anything useful was even _here_!

As I pulled apart the desk, the seconds ticked by- and they felt like agonizingly slow lifetimes. Every moment counted, and I just couldn't force myself to read faster, even though I knew Caden could return any minute. I felt like the cause was lost, until I came to the bottom drawer; I found that the thing was locked.

My mind jumped back to that key in the jaguar statue's mouth. No, it couldn't be-

I ran to fetch the key without a second to lose. No one locks something up unless they want to hide it, and I would have bet my soul that whatever I was looking for was in that last drawer.

Sure enough, the key fit into the tiny keyhole and I freed the contents within.

The entire drawer was reserved for a lone manila envelope, and in that envelope was a single sheet of paper. It talked about the steroid Caden had wanted us to put into the Panacea. I read further down the page, becoming grimmer with every word I soaked in.

This was bad. This was very, very bad.

Caden had an ulterior motive to just boosting a vampire's power through Reed's drug. The cunning bloodsucker. He wanted to dominate. With how the notes described the magnitude of steroid, he wanted to control more than just the immediate area.

From what I had read, Caden had added some sort of substance into the steroid, which not only made the vampires who ingested it stronger, but also put the user under Caden's complete command. We were creating an army of vampires for him with every vial of Panacea we sold. He had basically blackmailed us into selling the substance that would be the death of us. I felt the slow rise of panic in my chest. How many vampires had we given the drug to? Several hundred, I thought, since Caden expanded Reed's original client base.

The back of the page explained how the drug was tested and created- get this, they originally tested the brainwashing drug on_ demons _first. The enhancer killed the first test group, but later it reanimated them after death. _That_ would explain the zombie-corpses that kept finding their way into Reed's workroom.

Now I was here, in Caden's house, with information that could change everything. I felt my fingers begin to shake, and the piece of paper dropped from my hands and floated to the floor.

I had to warn Reed. I had to get help!

All of my previous anger and misery at the demon were overshadowed by self-preservation. Without a second thought, I dashed from the room and back down the hall. There'd been a black phone on the kitchen counter, hadn't there?

I came to a skidding halt in front of the kitchen and rushed for the phone. Had to call Reed. Had to warn him. Had to find a way out of here before Caden came back.

It took me longer than I wanted to dial Reed's number- my fingers were shaking so badly. The phone rang twice, and then Reed's voice rang soft and silky down the phone line.

* * *

_**Reed's POV**_

Reed had just fallen asleep when his phone began to vibrate furiously in his pocket. He growled in irritation before fetching it out to look at the caller I.D.

It was an unknown caller. He thought about just forwarding the call to voicemail, but something told him to pick it up. Once he was sure the drowsiness had been erased from his voice, he answered the call.

"Hello?" he asked dully. From the other end of the line, he heard frantic breathing- and he would know that frantic breathing from anywhere. Immediately alarmed, Reed sat up, his eyes narrowing.

"Hayley? What's wrong?" he demanded.

"Reed!" he heard her small voice cry- there was a sound in the background, and he heard Hayley's panicked scream- and then the line went dead. He was in frenzy before he even fully comprehended what was going on. All he knew was that Hayley was in trouble, and he needed to help her. But his thoughts were racing through his head at a mile a minute. Hayley. His Hayley.

His first plan of action was to go to her house. That was where the attack, or whatever had happened, had most likely occurred.

But he couldn't focus his thoughts. He couldn't transport himself to her door when all he felt was all-consuming terror for Hayley.

_Snap out of it_ the demon part of him seethed, _You have to be calculating about this._

Reed nodded, and after a few moments of controlled breathing, finally managed to center his thoughts enough to get a clear image in his mind. Within half a second, he was outside Hayley's front door.

With no loss of time, Reed burst through the door and easily brushed it aside.

"Hayley?" he called, stepping into the living room.

The TV was on, and it was blasting some ridiculous Lifetime movie, Hayley's cat was walking around in the kitchen staring at its food bowl. Sighing, Reed poured some of the disgusting smelling cat food into its bowl, before racing upstairs. Her room was empty. Every room was empty. And worse, everything was undisturbed. She couldn't have been attacked here. Going half out of his mind with worry, Reed checked her house again- and again after that. He thought that if he checked the house enough times, she would somehow magically appear. But reality and logic didn't work that way.

Reed slammed his fist into the wall beside him and pulled at his white hair.

How could this have happened? He should have stayed with her. He shouldn't have been such a fucking _dick_.

There it was again, that inkling of humanity was somehow taking over. Soon, even his humanity was overshadowed by pure, unadulterated, rage. He would find who ever took his Hayley, and he would make them pay- dearly.

Racing from the house, Reed stormed back into his office, and began ripping drawers from their bolts, doors from their hinges.

He had to come up with a plan- and fast.

_Hayley,_ he thought, _where are you?_

_

* * *

_

_**Hayley's POV**_

When Reed finally answered the phone, I had only managed to say Reed's name before the front door slammed behind me, and I whirled around to see Caden rushing forward. I screamed as he slammed me into the wall and ripped the phone from its chord. Tears streamed down my face as Caden towered over me, his eyes flashing silver as a cold smirk spread across his face.

A terrible sob ripped through my rib cage and I scolded myself for being so pathetic and weak. I wanted Reed. I didn't care if he'd been a completely asshole from the day I'd given him my virginity. I wanted him with me. I wanted him protecting me.

Like a striking jaguar, Caden's hand whipped out and wrapped cruelly around my arm- which yanked me up towards him. His face was inches from mine, and contorted into something monstrous and grotesque.

"So, you've found out my big, bad secret, have you?" Caden asked, his voice remaining smooth despite the deformed look of his face. He flashed me his bright fangs and I turned away, struggling to free myself of his grip.

"Oh, Hayley," Caden sighed softly, gently brushing the hair from my face. "What am I going to do with you, hm, sweetling?"

I cautiously turned back to face him, relieved to see that his face was back to normal.

"Let me go?" I offered hopefully, beside myself.

Caden smirked, but the smile didn't reach his eyes. With a rough yank, he led me down the hall and into the bedroom across from his office.

"I don't think so," Caden replied gruffly. Without a word, he led me past the giant king-sized bed, and into the closet. When he reached the farthest wall, he banged on it twice, and the wall fell away to reveal a small panic room with a cot and a toilet- the kind you see in prison cells. I blanched, and before I knew it, he shoved me into the room and closed the door.

"Why are you doing this?" I screamed pathetically.

Caden paused, looking thoughtfully at me before the smirk returned to his face. How I wished I could slap it off him!

"Let's just say," He began, "that I'm taking the term 'protecting my investment' to the next level."

"What are you talking about?" I demanded.

"Well, I can't have you ruining my plans to eliminate Reed and the werewolves, can I?" He asked in reply. My heart sank as I heard Caden say it out loud. "If you go off telling him what I've done, he'll find a way to outsmart me. This way, I not only have the upper hand, but I can also use you as leverage."

With that_ pleasant_ note, Caden was gone, and the door to my prison shut with finality.

Damn the coveted "upper hand." Slowly sinking onto the floor, the tears once again began to stream down my face. Not like _that_ act was new, though.

Reed, where are you?

I'm Hayley Kindler, and I've officially been kidnapped.


	20. Unfamiliar

_**A/N: Swan's Catastrophe here- and man oh man! My lips are sealed, but get ready people- shit is about to hit the fan!**_

_**A/N: Swan's Catastrophe, I freakin love you, and this story, and what we have planned for it, and I freakin love the readers and reviewers for still reading this...I am so excited for this thing I can't even contain it. :D**_

_**- xxdarknessxfallssxx**_

_**As Always: Read, Enjoy, Review**_

_**Swan's Catastrophe + xxdarknessxfallsxx  
**_

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_**Chapter 20: Unfamiliar**_

_Lately, nothing passes lightly.  
A heavy hand is holding me down -  
A breeze is just an unfamiliar sound, to me.  
_

_Just close the door, It's all coming back to me._  
_Be still my heart,_  
_'Cause it's all coming back._  
_Just close the door, It's all coming back to me._  
_Be still my heart,_  
_'Cause it's all coming back._  
_- Unfamiliar, The Birthday Massacre_

* * *

Funny, how easily one changes sides when self-preservation was a top priority. A few hours ago, all that mattered was how Reed crushed my ability to be a happy female. Now, I didn't blink at how he treated me, as long as he was looking for me. The majority of my heart, and even my _soul_ that he owned, told me that _Reed was coming_.

This fact comforted and terrified me. Caden mentioned _eliminating_ Reed, so naturally, I wanted him to flee and save himself, not risk himself to rescue me.

However, I already knew his stubborn ass was on the way- but whether or not it was because he actually cared or because I was just another clause in the contract was up to him. I couldn't control Reed's feelings anymore than I could tell him of Caden's plot from this prison. I was naive to believe that _I_ would be the one to "rescue his damned soul."

I scoffed at the thought.

People_ choose_ when they want to change. And right when I thought Reed was going to confess his true feelings, (seen in that intense passion he had), he _chose_ to give me the **hell**in his red eyes. The bastard.

I sighed with a deep longing when I couldn't give my insult actual hatred, because the only thing I wanted in the world right now were his arms to wrap around me and hold me while trapped in this panic room. Even after everything, all I felt was my love for him, however unrequited that love may be.

I leaned against two of the walls and pretended the hard surfaces were Reed's arms… which would have to do for now. Somehow, I couldn't force myself to believe that this was anyone's fault but my own. I knew, before I had even become sexually involved with Reed, what he was like; I knew what I was getting myself into, so the fact that I was crying over him like some weak, sniveling, useless girl was appalling. And now, because I did that- I had put my trust in the hands of a bloody vampire!

I looked around the room and thought bitterly, _A lot of good that did me._

I only regretted that I hadn't been able to warn Reed before Caden threw me into this damned room.

I grinded my teeth together, smoldering my frustration in the process. To think I actually _trusted_ that bloodsucking traitor. I had never felt as much loathing and hatred for somebody as I did for Caden, especially in the moment that he made it crystal clear he was the enemy. Additionally, I knew that if anything happened to Reed at the hands of the vampire, I'd hate him all the more. But again, my hatred would do no one any good as long as I was locked up in this prison.

I stretched out my legs, then winced. They were sore from me sitting on the cold concrete for so long.

It was about time to get the hell out of here. 'Operation: Escape Blood-sucking Vampire's Lair ASAP,' was now in effect. All I had to do… was come up with a plan _to_ escape.

The prison normally functioned as a panic room, so the door locked from the inside, but I would be willing to bet my left arm that Caden had locked me in somehow. Even with my doubts, I still moved toward the door and tried to push it open; it wouldn't budge.

I was successfully locked in, nice and snug. The next idea that flitted through my head was trying to escape through the toilet (you know, like removing it and climbing through the pipes), of course, I had no idea where those pipes would lead, let alone if I could even fit in them. And then there was the whole big thing of climbing through pipes full of shitty pee water. Ew.

I had to remind myself that I wasn't a character in "Catch me if you can", and people didn't climb through toilet pipes on a daily bases.

Then there was the air vents. I mean, I was in a panic room; I had to have ventilated air, right?

I searched, and finally found the vent near the ground beside the cot. It was way too tiny to fit through, and it led outside: literally. I could see the city skyline when I stared through it. Even if I did manage to get out through the vent, I highly doubted that I could come up with a plan that would keep me from falling 30 or more stories to my death.

So, I was left with nothing. The only thing I could try would be to somehow incapacitate Caden when he opened the door to bring me food, (_if_ he planned on bringing me food) and make a run for it.

Because I was_ totally_ capable of something like that.

With a defeated sigh, I collapsed down on to the cot and simmered in my anger some more.

I was really starting to hate vampires- although one could probably tell that from when I killed one awhile ago… It seemed that I was at a loss as of how to get out of here. The big battle at the cemetery, the one where Reed would convince the wolves as well as Shepard to ambush Caden, was two days away and I was going to be locked up in here, worried about my own safety as well as Reed's. I hoped with all my heart that he was okay, and hoped a little more that he would forget about me: for my sake and his.

I mean, looking at it from a logical perspective, (which he probably wouldn't do), if Reed went along with the plan with no regard for my safety, he could still walk out of this thing the victor.

Even though Caden would control hundreds of Panacea-injected vampires, the sheriff had no idea that we had built an army of our own enemies to rival his forces, and ultimately destroy themselves. We still had the element of surprise…kind of. After this battle, once Caden was defeated and dead, and all of our enemies eliminated each other… Reed could come find me, and we'd be safe.

Maybe it was wishful thinking, but it sounded like the perfect plan to me.

Of course, Reed was probably already doing everything he could to find me. Truly care about me or not, the demon seemed very protective over what was his.

Then again, Caden was equally protective over his own business. The vampire knew no good deed; hell, I didn't even know if he planned on keeping me alive until Tuesday. I gulped at the thought. The vampire said that he couldn't let me tell Reed his secret plan, and if I couldn't tell Reed, and I couldn't help him sell the drug. What use was I to Caden?

What _leverage_ could I be for Caden if he just wanted to kill Reed anyway?

* * *

_**(The much anticipated)  
Caden's POV**_

The vampire Caden whistled to himself while taking brisk, measured steps towards the demon-in-question's "office." His ruby eyes scanned the underground room with barely concealed apathy and disdain; papers and body parts were trashed on the floor, probably ripped from every open cabinet and drawer.

Did the albino have any proper conduct? Even when Caden was nothing more than a cave-dweller during the 9th century, he managed to keep his adobe tidier than this rat-hole.

Just another reason Caden loathed demons even more than werewolves- and Reed, well, he loathed Reed most of all. Why him? Caden didn't waste time thinking about why he wanted to violently murder Reed so badly… On a similar topic, abhor for demonkind probably started somewhere around the early 5th century, back when the sheriff called himself a proper Roman. Coincidentally, the 5th century was when Rome was on its knees for a bunch of fucking_ Visigoths_, who liked to enlist the help of ruthless, lawless demons now and then. Caden could blame his entire loss of riches on those vile beasts from hell- back then, anyway. Now, the hatred had fermented to something between a tasty red wine and a virgin's blood.

It gave Caden a certain feeling of happiness that he now held, within his very home, the key to Reed's one source of compassion…if that's what it was.

The naïve human would be perfect leverage to dangle over the demon's head when the time came. Caden's lip twitched into a small smirk as he imagined the hundreds of scenarios involving how he could manipulate Reed with the girl until all the demon felt was complete misery- it wasn't enough that the albino was blackmailed into doing Caden's labor. The vampire was going to make the demon suffer, mentally as well as physically, before meeting his very permanent death; it was all just a matter of the dots on the timeline.

Caden had just made it into the center of the ruined room when glowing red eyes emerged from the corner and narrowed into a glare. Careful to keep his facial expressions neutral, the vampire let his invigorating thoughts fade. He couldn't let the demon know he had anything to do with Hayley's disappearance, after all.

Caden locked eyes with Reed, both pairs red and looming… However, there was an element in his pawn's gaze that was absent before. It reminded Caden of a vampire's when the tenacious power of bloodlust takes over.

"What happened here?" Caden asked, calculating that he allowed just enough curiosity and boredom into his voice.

"Hayley's gone," Reed replied shortly, not even bothering for appearances' sake to be civil. Caden nearly rolled his eyes, but caught himself, and instead turned his attention to the drawers and cupboards that had been torn from their bearings.

"And you were expecting to find her stuffed inside a drawer in your office?" Caden said, unable to resist poking fun.

"This is **not** a joking matter."

The vampire paused his line of actions he had planned out, and glanced at the being that dared speak to him in such an offensive manner. Reed stood with his fists balled; a resolution in his body so strong it made the demon look like a Classical statue with all the pale and stillness. Obviously, the matter was_ more_ than serious for Reed. Caden used everything in him to not smirk at the new thoughts in his head… He'd known the demon favored to the naive girl, but this was _more_ than a typical demon attachment. It was going to be that much more fun to torture the albino.

But now was not the time.

"You should learn to keep better track of your human. Without her, you're going to be behind schedule when I return in two days," the vampire warned in a cold tone.

"To hell with your deal. I'm not moving ahead until she's found."

However much Caden wanted to remind the demon how inferior he was to Caden, and that the little prick needed to follow orders regardless of some damn human, the vampire opted for a more collected way out.

"Let me worry about finding your precious Hayley," Caden said in an arrogant voice. "I have far more resources and contacts. You have…" He glanced around the room once. "Well, you have corpses of your own kind lying around."

The vampire heard Reed growl from across the room, but noticed that his fists had dropped and body went limp.

Submission from the opponent was a very beautiful thing, Caden thought. He kept his smile internal, once again. The demon didn't suspect that he held the girl hostage… Everything would continue as planned.

* * *

_**Reed's POV**_

Reed's vision was red around the edges as he glared at Caden with every bit of hell in his body. He didn't want to admit that the vampire was right, Caden had a larger network and more men to look for Hayley…

And Reed didn't want to ruin the one and only chance he had to take out Caden by being a stubborn ass right now.

He unraveled his fists and took a more relaxed pose- one that didn't stretch against his suit."_Fine._" The word rolled off his tongue the way he usually said _fuck you_. "I'll do things your way, but only until I don't have to anymore."

"Two days," Caden reminded easily.

"Two fucking days. Hayley better be found before then."

Caden inclined his head gracefully, and peered up at Reed with a penetrating gaze.  
"You have my word," Caden replied softly. Reed narrowed his eyes infinitesimally, his lips stretching into a tight frown.

"Yeah, well, you'll forgive me if I say that your word means less than nothing to me," Reed spat. "Find Hayley, bring her back, and then we'll see just how trustworthy you really are."

If looks could kill, Caden would have skewered Reed with his gaze, but after a second of tense silence, Caden straightened and walked towards the door.

"I'll find the girl. In the mean time, I expect you to behave accordingly-"

When Reed snorted, Caden whirled around and narrowed his eyes. "I'm serious, _parasite_, fuck this up and I'll have your head."

At that, Reed made a sound somewhere in between a laugh and a growl. "Wow, look at the pot calling the kettle black," he said, stepping towards the vampire. "Don't underestimate me vampire, because if you do not bring Hayley back safely- I'll have more than your head."

The two squared off, staring at each other as a silent accord was shared between them. After a few seconds, they both nodded to one another and Reed watched as Caden left his office.

When he was sure that the vampire was gone, Reed turned, a low growl rising from his throat. The vampire was lying. Reed didn't have proof, but he was sure that Caden held an ulterior motive. The masked glint in his eyes, the measured facial expressions… The vampire's own deceit worked against him because he looked all too unnatural- even more so than a normal vampire.

Reed had a hunch, and he would need one of his new 'allies' to test it.

* * *

"Are you positive that the scents are the same?"

Reed had asked the question at least three times already, and the werewolf had given the same answer after each sniff.

The werewolf tested the scents around Hayley's kitchen tile and dining table one last time. His wet, hairy nose twitched this way and that as he sifted through the dozens of scents in the girl's house; Reed watched the dog with mild interest. Finally, the beast stood up on his large hind-legs and gave his answer with an uncharacteristic respect. "Affirmative. The same vampire that stepped into your office was here not long before."

The only reason the wolf didn't give Reed more lip, or even bothered to be used as a K9 unit, was because the demon had compelled him.

"And you're not smelling another vampire?" Reed inquired. He tacked on a, "Answer truthfully," with a venom in his voice and fire in his eyes.

"I'd know the scent of that bastard sheriff anywhere. He's the prime target in the operation two days from now."

The demon turned to start pacing through Hayley's front hall; looks like his hunch was correct.

It was _Caden_ who took Hayley in the first place. That explained why there were no signs of a struggle at her house. Hayley would have left with Caden willingly; probably completely unaware that he was out to cause both her and himself harm. Yes, the vampire had been getting awfully cozy with Hayley, hadn't he? Always flirting, and comforting…

Another growl rose from Reed's throat, this one arising out of pure jealousy.

_Mine,_ The demon part of him hissed. _Mine._

It didn't take a genius to figure out who the demon was talking about. Reed paced into more rooms as his agitation grew. It wasn't just that he was pissed that something that belonged to _him_ had been taken (granted, that was infuriating enough), it was the fact that the vampire Caden was behind it.

_Punish._

Reed didn't spend much time wondering why the truly demon part of him ever only spoke its thoughts in one word. Right now, for once in a long time, his human and his demon side were on the same page.

He would find Hayley, and any motherfuckers who got in his way were in for a nasty surprise, and then, Caden would pay. With his life.

His thoughts ventured back to Hayley; her soft skin, silky hair, large doe-like eyes…

Reed cursed aloud. If Caden had hurt even one little hair on her head… He shuddered at the joy it would bring him to pay the vampire back for that mistake- tenfold.

_Oh, Hayley, _Reed thought with a powerful fondness.

_Mine._ The demon hissed.

_No,_ Reed replied mentally. _Ours._

With a glance at the werewolf in the kitchen, Reed gave the mutt a two finger gesture to scram, before he headed outside with nothing but violence on his mind. Reed's first stop was going to be the home of one of his most loyal costumers- Caden's second in command.

And he didn't plan to make his visit Panacea-related.

No, this would be much more gratifying than a sale. Reed smirked to himself in the darkness.

Two days. Only two days left until everything became his.


	21. Waiting On You

_**A/N: Hello people! Sorry for the wait- but as mentioned before, we're pretty busy.**_

_**As always, Read, Enjoy, Review!**_

_**- Swan's Catastrophe**_

* * *

_**Chapter 21: Waiting On You**_

_I'm just waiting on you to bring yourself to justice.  
Forget about the past—it's all wet and rusted.  
I'm just waiting on you to know we've been discovered,  
that what we've been's been uncovered.  
I'm just waiting on you. I'm just waiting on You._

_-Waiting on you, Sun Airway_

* * *

I had given up on plans for escape some eight hours ago, and now had began a subconscious plan for escape; wearing down the floor until I could just fall through. Yep, I'd been pacing for a full eight hours and had no intention of stopping. Of course, my legs were losing feeling- but that was better than the soreness that had begun two hours ago. Now I just felt light and weightless. Numb. But that could have been because I hadn't eaten in… sixteen hours or so?

I had been correct in the assumption that Caden would not be feeding me. I sighed and continued my pacing- just then, the door slid open, and the smell of warm food wafted through the air.

I had spoken too soon, it seemed.

I turned and saw Caden in the panic room, the door already closing behind him- not that I had any chance of getting passed him anyway- and a plate full of chicken, mashed potatoes, and gravy rested in his hand. My displeasure for him returned, but my mouth began to water.

He smiled pleasantly at me and sat down on my cot, stretching his arm out to hand me the plate.

I snatched it from him without much hesitation and began spooning finger-loads into my mouth. Screw appearances; he'd kidnapped me and let me go without food for almost a whole day! I ate like once every hour, so that wasn't cool. Not cool at all.

"Sorry about the whole dinner for breakfast thing, I kind of forgot you were in here," Caden said with a smirk.

I rolled my eyes and leveled one of my most vicious death-glares at him. "Oh, so its morning now, is it? See, I would've never known that what with being locked up in an eight-by-five cell without any windows or fresh air."

Caden raised an eyebrow. "Well it wouldn't really be an effective panic room if there were ways for people to get in- or out," he said calmly.

I narrowed my eyes, but continued to assault my food. Caden watched, seeming generally interested, before turning his eyes to where I did some pretty effective pacing on the concrete. The place I'd been dragging my feet was an obviously darker shade than the rest of the floor.

"So…" Caden said, a small smile on his lips. "I saw Reed today."

The glare was wiped from my face and replaced by a brilliant smile. I knew he would come for me, I knew it! And the darling had gone straight to Caden. My heart swelled. So, it was true, Reed did care about me.

"It's funny," Caden continued. "He didn't seem worried about you in the least. Was he angry that he would have to pick up your slack on selling the drug; yes. But worried for your safety? Well, that was just a big, fat _no_."

Right before my delicate heart took a turn into the sad depths of about twenty-four hours ago, I stopped my doubt from manifesting and stared Caden right in the eyes. "You're lying," I said, feeling just as resolute as I sounded. The conviction in my voice surprised even me- Caden looked similar to an ignorant doe. "He'll do whatever he can to find me, and when he figures out that it was _you_ who took me? He's going to kill you. And then, just because I tell him to, he'll pee on your corpse; 'cause that's how much we both hate you."

I must have pushed a button, because Caden's face darkened and he growled before he could control his reaction.

But after a second, he was back to looking amiable and smug.

"That's where you're wrong. He actually put _me_ in charge of finding you and bringing you back. I imagine he'll be disappointed when I bring back your lifeless body," Caden replied.

I shrugged, sliding down the wall to stare at him from across the room. I had to _sound_ the confident that I tried desperately to feel.

"We'll see."

"You're a fool, you know," Caden added softly. "To love him." I glanced at Caden's feet and hardened myself to his harmful censure. "He'll use you, betray you, and then kill you. And you'll just be the idiot who believed everything he said."

I snorted. "Funny, that sounds a lot like someone I know, but it isn't Reed." I stood up and once again began to pace. "Let's see, someone who's used me…hm, well you've done that. And now, you've also betrayed me, and admitted to having plans of killing me. Ah ha… Are you sure that you're not the demon in this circumstance?"

"Is that right, Hayley?" Caden snarled, standing from the bed and stalking towards me. "If you're so sure about your hero, then where the hell is he? Because he's not here, tearing the place apart looking for you. No, he's back at the cemetery, making a profit from the deaths of his own people, and selling his own demise in the process. Let's not forget that your hero isn't going to welcome you back with outstretched arms unless your pretty legs are open wide."

I hissed in a breath and popped my jaw. Okay, I didn't believe a word that the traitor said, but still- that hurt.

"You're lying. I know you are. And if you think that you're going to turn me against Reed, you're wrong. So you might as well just _go_."

"Fine." Caden growled. "It'll be your funeral."

Caden muttered something under his breath, and the doors slid open. I made a thrust toward them, but they were closed before I'd even put my entire body into momentum. Again, I sank into depression.

Stupid Caden. He didn't know anything. Reed may not be in love with me, but he cared about me. I knew he did.

All I had to do now- as much as I hated the thought of being unable to do anything- was wait for him to come to my rescue. The cliché of it all made me itch, but since I was very near being altogether useless in situations that concerned the supernatural, I had no choice but to leave my rescue up to my demon.

I tried not to let Caden's words make me doubt Reed, but the more time that passed, it was hard not to. He had been a complete asshole to me for the past few days. Had he stopped caring? Was he really going to let me go? Would he let my mom die because I wasn't helping him? After hours of sitting in almost darkness with those thoughts running through my head, my despair became almost too much to bear.

I clutched my hands to my head, trying to force the thoughts to the back of my skull, or at least to quiet them a little- but it didn't help.

_Reed's not coming for you. He doesn't care about you; you're just a stupid human. He'll never need you like you need him. You're going to die in here. Reed's not coming._

Over and over the words repeated in my head, and I clutched my skull harder, ripping hair, scalping myself with my nails. Did I believe them? Did I have it in me to accept the defeat of my first love?

Finally, a scream pierced through the words, shattering them like the kids back home threw rocks at faded stained glass- and that scream reverberated through my head and left my mouth with more force and volume than I could have ever imagined.

I screamed until my throat was raw, until I tasted a distinct taste of copper on my tongue, until soundless wind blew from my lungs. And then, I collapsed on the bed, completely drained… and unable to hold back my tears.

Reed wasn't coming for me. He didn't care. Even if there _was_ a part of him that did care, like the old Reed, his ignorance was going to let me die.

Through my broken sobs, I could almost swear that I heard Caden's cruel laughter through the walls of the panic room.

* * *

_**Reed's POV**_

Reed appeared in Julien (Caden's second-in-command)'s kitchen, where the vampire seemed to be warming up a water bottle full of blood in the microwave. One would think the guy would have fresh, with his position in the coven… The best part was, the vampire's vulnerable back was turned towards the vastness of the room; the idiot. Reed grimaced, and stalked silently on the tile towards the man, his blade easily slipping into his hand from his sleeve. He would have to go about this the right way, even though right now the demon was screaming in his head to _Kill_.

Just as the vampire turned from the microwave, Reed simultaneously swiveled around him and stayed in his blind spot. When the second-in-command took a step, the silent demon made his move and lodged the knife hilt-deep in Julien's chest. The vampire glanced at his sudden attacker, and then at the blade in his chest, looking completely confused, before his eyes closed and he collapsed on the ground.

He wasn't dead, of course. Simply unconscious. But, with any luck, Reed would get the information he wanted, and Julien would be dead very, very soon.

But not too soon.

With a pleased smile, Reed stalked around the counter to stare down at Julien's helpless form. As the smile fell from his face, replaced by a look of cruel calculation, Reed took the vampire by the legs and dragged him from the kitchen into the wine cellar.

Oh, yes, all pleasantries had left Reed now. Now, he was only focused on finding Hayley, and killing everyone who Caden was close to, before offing that damned parasite himself.

When he reached the top of the cellar steps, Reed dropped Julien's legs and gave the unconscious body a shove with his foot. He was amused by the thumps and bumps the vampire's body created as it rolled down the stairs.

When he was satisfied that the right-hand-man was completely out of it, he went in search of chains and a sturdy chair, and upon returning to the wine cellar, bolted the door with every lock.

The dirty work was just beginning.

Reed righted Julien's limbs and used the chains to nearly combine the vampire's flesh with the piece of sturdy furniture. And to keep the chair from breaking, he let some of his newfound power synthesize with the seat's structure so it wouldn't break under the vampire's strength once he woke up. Reed then took a chair of his own, and waited.

Soon, his mind began to wander, but it always returned his brown-haired human. His beautiful Hayley.

Had Caden hurt her? Tortured her? Killed her? Or worse…turned her into a vampire?

He doubted that Caden would refrain himself just because Hayley was female- and human. Hatred racked his entire body, as he stared off into space and imagined all the things he was going to do to Caden when he saw him next.

And then his blood warmed for something entirely different as he imagined what he would do to _Hayley_ when he got her back at last. She would never again leave his arms again, that was for sure.

"What the hell?"

The sound of Julien's voice snapped Reed to attention. He immediately slapped the vulnerable look from his face and took up an appearance of cool indifference. Centuries of living through emotions made it easy to make people see what you wanted them to see. And right now, Reed wanted Julien to see that if he did not answer every question the way Reed wanted it answered- he would die. And this time, it would be for good.

He started it off simple. Slowly massaging the blade in his hand before he finally looked up at the sorry prick. "Where's Hayley?" Reed demanded.

Julien's eyes met Reed's; black versus red, and he smirked. "Hayley?" Julien asked, playing dumb no doubt. "You mean that human girl who's always following after you like a love-sick puppy? _That_ Hayley?"

Reed's lips pulled back from his teeth, vision flashing red. "_No_, you idiot. The Hayley who lives three states over- _yes,_ _that_ Hayley. What have you and Caden done with her?"

Julien raised an amused eyebrow, which told the demon interrogator that this vampire had no idea of what the night held for him. Which was alright with Reed, because the vampire was going to _surely_ find out. The insolence of Julian's brow made Reed reach out and shallowly slice the vampire's high-rising cheek. He restrained the violent urge to go further and waited for his intimidation to take effect.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Julien said, this time with less feeling.

Reed rolled his eyes dramatically, and smiled at the prick while twisting the blade near Julien's eye. Impossibly, the vampire paled.

"I was hoping you'd say that," Reed finally replied in a whisper close to the man's ear. Then, Reed reclined in the chair- to Julien's comfort- but with a snap of his fingers, a large, black duffel bag appeared in front of him. The demon slowly bent towards it; scrutinizing Julien's face all the while, and unzipped the bag.

The demon took a pause for dramatic effect before he dumped all of its contents out.

Shiny new pliers, saws, scissors, scalpels, twelve-inch blades, double-edged knives, hammers, lighters, needles, pins, and shears littered the floor. He turned to Julien expectantly.

The look on the vampire's face did not disappoint.

_Now, _Reed thought. _We're getting somewhere_.

His demon couldn't help but agree.


	22. Young Blood

_**A/N: Hiya guys, Swan's Catastrophe here with a new chapter from xxdarknesxfallsxx and yours truly. We literally rushed to finish it before xxdarknessxfallsxx took a vaca; which means it'll be a few days longer before the next chapter. Don't worry though, she'll be back before you know it and we'll be posting more chapters of Panacea and Hex Hollow in no time :)**_

_**So for now- Happy reading, and don't forget to review!**_

_**- Swan's Catastrophe**_

* * *

_**Chapter 22: Young Blood**_

_Can't help myself but count the flaws  
Claw my way out through these walls  
One temporary escape  
Feel it start to permeate_

_We lie beneath the stars at night_  
_Our hands gripping each other tight_  
_You keep my secrets hope to die_  
_Promises, swear them to the sky_

_-Young Blood, The Naked & Famous_

* * *

Reed never particularly had a taste for blood. His source of food was the life force of others, something intangible but still felt inside; an energy deep down in a place that can't be pinpointed on a dissection table. His food was different from a vampire's, who also ingested a life force of humans, but theirs was more wet and red than Reed liked.

However, the stench evaporating from the several buckets was somewhat sweet. Who knew _vampire blood_ was such a delicacy.

"I-I've told you everything… Have merc-c-cy." Julien shook as he pleaded, with the latter action being just as pathetic as the first. The vampire's shaking was excusable, however, since the creature held scarcely any blood by the time he started singing the words Reed wanted to hear. Tiny droplets created a slow, repetitive song as they dripped from Julien's many gashes into the buckets below. Gravity was the only force pulling the liquid from the veins now, and since Julien's body was suspended by two enormous hooks lodged underneath each shoulder-blade (each hook attached to a chain which extended to opposite sides of the room), gravity was doing a fine job with the blood that remained. If Reed were lucky, the vampire would rip apart and save Reed from listening to his desperate bribes. "P-please…" The demon ignored the vampire's futile cries and dipped a finger into one of the rusty buckets, which was filled to the brim with crimson. His curiosity got the better of him as he stared at the liquid and the way it coated his finger, filing into every line and pore- before he stuck the substance in his mouth.

Too soon in calling it a delicacy.

"Let me live and I'll make it worth your while. Please, p-ple-" The vampire almost started sobbing. Reed rolled his crimson eyes- like_ that_ had worked the four times before. The guy wasn't even getting creative with his speech; he just kept repeating the same crap, and that particularly annoying word… "Please." There, he said it again.

"We're done here," Reed finally acknowledged. Julien's lifeless eyes perked at the sound of the demon's low voice. With a small smirk tilting up his lips, Reed closed the distance between himself and the other vampire; he took a firm hold on Julien's legs, and when the vampire realized what Reed was doing- it was too late. Reed gave a hard tug on Julien's legs, and the vampire gurgled out a scream as the hooks in his shoulder blades sunk deeper before tearing through the flesh at the front of his chest. Julien gave another scream as Reed pulled harder, and the hooks traveled up to the bone at his shoulders.

"_Please, please stop!"_

Trying very hard not to roll his eyes, (and not succeeding) Reed gave another little tug and heard one of Julien's bones snap like a tree branch.

"Don't worry," Reed said softly. "It'll be over soon. But now would be the perfect time to give me any names that you might have accidentally left out?"

"Please, I've told you e-everything. Caden is going to k-k-kill me."

Reed's crimson eyes hardened. "_I'm _going to kill you."

With that final threat, Reed pulled the hooks through the last of Julien's flesh and bones; as the vampire fell, a surprising amount of blood spilled on the floor, followed by a loud _crack_. Reed echoed the noise by taking Julien's head in his hands and twisting until he completely ripped through the spine, and the only thing holding Julien's head on his shoulder became his skin- which didn't do a very good job, seeing as there was hardly any flesh left on the vampire.

With a satisfied sigh, Reed clapped his hands together in a job well done, and then began to gather up his things. Julien had given him the names of quite a few vampires, and Reed was _very_ interested in what they'd have to say after he got them to "open up."

The thought had a small grin lighting up Reed's face as he picked up his duffel bag and headed towards the next vampire on his hit list. He whistled the tune to _high ho high ho, it's off to work we go_ the whole way there.

* * *

_**Hayley's POV**_

I shifted on the small cot, then sat up and threw the blankets from my already clammy skin. I'd been sure that I'd heard a sound outside and even though I knew better than to hope, I still couldn't help thinking that it was Reed coming to rescue me. And, of course, it wasn't. No, instead the door opened to reveal Caden. Surprise, surprise. With a small smile, he tossed me a pre-packaged honey bun and pointed towards the door.

"C'mon, you'll have to eat on the road."

"Where are we going?" I said, not really caring if he answered me or not. It was clear that Reed was not going to come for me- otherwise he would have done so by now. And it was also clear that Caden was going to kill me when he realized that Reed really didn't care two shits about me.

I could just feel the love.

Caden raised his eyebrows as he crossed bare arms over his chest. "Today's Tuesday, we're going to the graveyard to wipe out your boyfriend and whatever ridiculous plot he's come up with to destroy me."

"I can't imagine why he'd want to go and do something like that," I said drily.

The vampire snorted softly and shoved me out of the room. As he led me past his bedroom door, I thought grimly to myself, this would probably be the last time I saw the inside of Caden's house. I still hadn't decided if that was a good or a bad thing by the time Caden led me outside and into a car with darkly tinted windows. We were moving before I knew it, and a very large part of me had already accepted that I was probably going to die tonight. I began to worry about myself- as well as my lack of faith in Reed, but the proof was all around me. Caden still apprehended me, Reed was off doing god-only-knew what, and I was probably going to be used like some sacrificial lamb for whatever was supposed to happen tonight.

The most worrisome part of it all was that I couldn't make myself care.

* * *

_**Reed's POV**_

"We're in position."

"Excellent," Reed replied, "I have some business to attend to, but I'll arrive once I'm done. Stay put, and stay vigilant- I have no doubt in my mind that Caden has something up his sleeve."

"Understood." The reply came from both the wolves and Sheppard's demons.

Reed walked back to the chair where he had hung his coat, and tossed the cell phone into the chest pocket. Then, he turned back to his latest victim: a bottom-feeder in Caden's close-knit group of trusted informants.

He was the kind of vampire that wouldn't be missed, but would also have a lot of information in particular interest to Reed.

"Sorry for the interruption," Reed said in his most amiable voice as he shoved his bloody shirt sleeves up his forearms. "Where were we?"

Reed reexamined the vampire for a quick reminder of his train of thought before the calls; the creature was currently chained to a chair, battered, and bruised in the living room of his penthouse. Dark of hair (whether from being soaked with blood or because it was naturally dark, Reed couldn't remember), pale of eyes, well-built, and barely clinging to whatever life he still possessed.

"Oh, yes, that's right," Reed said, without waiting for the vampire to reply. "You were just telling me where Caden has taken up residence. You're his real estate advisor, are you not?"

After many long moments of no sound other than the vampire struggling to regain control of his breathing, he replied: "For the last time- I don't know. I don't know!"

A small smirk tugged up Reed's lips. "I know that you are lying, and I assure you, I'm quite skilled at extracting information, whether you give that information to me willingly is up to you. So, as cliché as it sounds, this can go one of two ways…"

The vampire raised his head to glare and Reed chuckled softly, tilting his head to the side as he stared down at the vampire. "Which will it be?" The vampire glared for a few seconds more before hanging his head in resignation.

"He has a penthouse, here; in the city. It's huge. If he were keeping the girl anywhere, it would be there."

Reed's eyebrows piqued up in interest. He had gotten the same story from the last two vampires he had paid a visit to- three out of three was as good as any.

"Now was that so hard?" Reed asked coldly.

"Will you let me go now?"

Reed smirked, a sure sign that something very unpleasant was about to happen. Oddly enough, most of the vampires he'd met had yet to catch on to this dead giveaway.

"Sure."

He closed the distance between the vampire and himself, and kicked out at the seat of his chair in one fluid movement. Before the vampire even realized that he was no longer chained to the chair, Reed hefted him up and threw him into the glass window that overlooked the city. The glass cracked, tiny little fractures creating small designs, before breaking completely. The vampire screamed for twelve stories on the way down.

Reed peeked over the edge and spotted the vampire's mangled body in the darkened street below.

"He's not getting up from that," Reed whispered to himself in faux concern.

After a quick check of the time, Reed started off for Caden's penthouse, with nothing but vengeance on his mind…

…..

The penthouse was pitch black when Reed arrived, but he wasn't discouraged. Hayley was around here somewhere, and he was going to find her. He flicked on the light switch, muscles tense; awaiting an ambush that never came. The place was empty, completely abandoned. Reed could feel denial creeping up on him, even as he tore through every room and came up empty handed.

She had to be here! She had to be! Even when Reed searched the last room, Caden's room, with the makeshift prison/closet he still couldn't believe she wasn't there.

The fucker had moved her! And then another thought occurred to Reed, Caden was probably on the way to the cemetery this very minute with Hayley- and while he was doing that, Caden's office was just across the hall chock full of information that was just waiting to be read. With an angry frown, Reed stormed into Caden's office and began flipping through papers- one of which had the scent of Hayley all over it. Reed skimmed the sheet once, again, and then a third time just to be sure. With a growl of pleasure, Reed flipped out his cell phone.

"Yes?" The gravelly voice on the other end assured Reed he had the right werewolf.

"The vampires are on their way, be prepared for an ambush of a large scale. There is going to be a human girl with them- she is not to be harmed. I'm on my way."

Reed flipped the phone shut and started for his office. If Caden was going to play dirty, Reed was too.

_Tonight,_ He thought grimly, _Will be a night Caden will regret; dearly._


	23. Wish

**A/N: I, xxdarknessxfallsxx, apologize over 9000 times for the long wait. It was completely and solely my fault for creating such a busy summer schedule, as well as lazing during the days I**_** did**_** have free time. At last, here is part one to the exciting installment that is the end of the fantastic tale of ****Panacea****.**

**Swan's Catastrophe has been having laptop issues, but if she were here right now, she'd say something like 'I'm sooooo sorry it took so long, but (I hope) you will love the chapter regardless! Youbetterlovethechapter…'**

**(And of course) __****As Always: Read, Enjoy, Review!**

* * *

_**Chapter 23: Wish**_

"This is the first day of my last days  
I put my faith in god and my trust in you  
Now there's nothing more fucked up I could do  
Wish there was something real, wish there was something true  
Wish there was something real in this world full of you  
I'm the one without a soul, I'm the one with this big fucking hole."

-Wish, Nine Inch Nails

* * *

**Reed's POV**

Reed still stood in Caden's home, squeezing the phone in his palm, as if applying pressure to the device would mend his situation. If 'mend' was even the right word. 'Obliterate every obstacle in his path' would be more like it.

Both the demon and the man inside Reed wanted two things equally: to have Hayley returned… and to make the piece-of-shit that stole her pay dearly.

The albino fingered the phone open again and dialed Shepard. During the course of the ringing, Reed tore through Caden's office, looking for something sharp, anything weapon-like… See, a vampire of Caden's stature would be egotistical enough to keep a weapon that could destroy him within reach. Somewhere the arrogant bastard could admire its irony and bask in the feeling of being alive, while the weapon lay dormant and unthreatening. Reed tore books from shelves and opened every cabinet in the study… Finally, when he traced his digits underneath the desk again, he felt something heavy and sharp strapped to the underside.

'Within reach' was an understatement. Perhaps Caden kept a weapon that could kill a vampire on the underside of his desk, so easily accessible, because the vampire feared an assassination from his own kind. Which was understandable, because the sheriff was "ambitious" enough to kill his own father in order to gain territory, as well as enslave his own kind with an addicting drug. Another vampire wanting him dead seemed plausible for such an immense douchebag.

Too bad no vampire would _ever _get the opportunity to off Caden, because Reed would take care of him by the end of the night.

Finally, Shepard answered the call. "We've got vampires, and tons of them. Looks like they're in formation."

Reed grabbed the weapon and ran to the window in Caden's penthouse that overlooked the entire city. A brilliant view, but no stars in the sky. A shame, because Reed knew Hayley loved the stars.

If anything had happened to her… Reed growled deeply.

"Reed?"

The demon snapped back into the moment- and the phone he was nearly crushing. He took a breath, and brainstormed a strategy to relay to Shepard. "You and your demons stay undetected. The wolves will suffer the ambush of Caden's little army, and they should be able to handle their own with brute strength. Whether the wolves come out victorious or defeated, take advantage of the chaos for an ambush of your own. I suggest going for the legs if you can't tear out the heart."

Reed eyed the metal in his hand. He knew he had to rip out the heart of a vamp to kill it completely, but he didn't know a weapon existed solely for the purpose of heart-ripping. His red eyes flashed when the light bounced off the shiny talons.

"Assemble a special team to go after Caden's guard… if he has one. Make sure he's exposed, and then I'll come in." Reed jabbed the claw-weapon into the air, imagining the bastard's chest as the target. "Whatever happens, you leave Caden to me. Do you understand? You leave that filthy sucker to_ me_."

With those brash words, he ended the call and transported himself to the outskirts of the graveyard.

**Hayley's POV**

The car drove from Caden's penthouse to the graveyard in my small ghost town- a town I'd been raised in, and after today, would probably die in.

At least my mother would have the chance to die in some other place. The thought of her living on after today comforted me, especially in the moment when I convinced myself that I wouldn't. Reed may have been looking for me, but hadn't succeeded in finding me. Just as he was going to try to defeat Caden, but would more likely fail considering the difference in numbers and Caden's element of surprise.

Wasn't _I_ just full of optimism this fine evening?

My body felt numb and lifeless already as the car's engine hummed with the speed of 100 down the freeway. Every imperfection in the road jerked me around in the backseat, but not even the skidding stop at the end of the journey could shake me from my careless haze. I figured that me and the man I lov-... Me and the man I cared deeply for, even after _everything_, were going to die tonight. The only factors were the _when,_ and the_ how_.

Caden parked the car on the outside edge of the graveyard property and snatched me out of the car before I had a chance to break for it- which hadn't even crossed my mind.

The narcissistic vampire only had to wrap a firm hand around the back of my neck to lead me around. One immortal hand was enough to kill me, after all. He could snap my neck or rip out my jugular, whatever he preferred, with just a few calculated motions. My duct taped hands kept me from uselessly fighting, or finding anything to stab into his heart, (if that was even how to kill a vampire outside of Hollywood). End note, I had nothing better to do than be carted around like a pet, completely at the mercy of my master. Didn't exactly have the will to fight back, either. What did it matter if the end result was the same: Reed and I _dead_.

My captor led us through the thick tree line that guarded the cemetery walls; upon reaching the fence, he threw me over his shoulder like luggage and jumped over with ease. Waiting on the other side were rows and rows and rows _and rows_ of vampires, just like a regiment that waited for orders from their Colonel. Better yet, their General.

Caden seemed to focus on a single vampire that chaperoned the companies. Without a signal of any kind, the vampire knew Caden wanted to see him, and swiftly marched over for an audience.

Was _that _how the steroid worked? Caden had mental control over all of the drug users? In which case, if you took out the controller, you rendered the mind-control useless. If Reed could just kill Caden, the army of vampires would be unorganized, easy to take advantage of in the chaos.

I stopped at this thought… if. _If_ Reed could kill Caden, _if_ he lived through the night.

_If_ he cared at all.

Caden finished his conversation, and when the lesser vampire turned around to walk away, every vampire in formation stood simultaneously at attention. Caden closed his eyes in order to concentrate, and then every vampire under his influence moved in sync. Like one mass, the rows turned to face the east. Maybe if my hands weren't tied, I could have run away quickly enough while he was distracted…

I rolled my eyes. Running was useless against a vampire.

Anyway, Caden seemed to be totally in his own world while he mentally controlled his legion. It probably took the vampire every bit of mental capacity to control the two-or-three-_hundred_ vampires, even though Caden looked so tranquil and composed. Feeling daring, I waved my tied hands in front of his face once, before quickly retreating to his side. _Nada,_ nothing. He was focusing on levels that left him very vulnerable. Someone stronger than myself, or someone not tied-up, could take advantage of Caden's state. If only I could let Reed know…

I felt Caden's hand wrap around my neck again. His vulnerability was gone- for the time being- and his cruel stare intensified as his minions walked, assumedly, into battle. "We'll have front row seats, sweet Hayley." As he said this, I was carried like luggage again, this time to the highest point in the cemetery. The jerk dropped me face-first on top of a large, stone mausoleum that probably belonged to some old, rich guy. From the roof of this structure, the entire cemetery could be seen- and that included the poorly hidden wolves on the far eastern side.

With the elevated view, I measured a more accurate proportion of Reed's forces versus the vampires; things were not going to end well for the wolves under Reed's command.

A few minutes ago in the car ride, I had no hope, but sometime between then and now, I wanted (with every ounce of my being) my demon to be victorious._ Somehow,_ I wanted Reed to live through this night. Crazy, right? I braced myself against the edge of the stone roof and looked out over the eve of battle. A cool breeze stroked my hair, whispering the fate of my beloved in my ear: _death._ My soul felt for Reed's very possible and tragic defeat.

My heart sank at the realization.

Caden stood in all his pretension and pride just behind me. "Up here, you can see Reed's pathetic plan, as well as the demon himself, fall." A small, angry fire flared in my chest as Caden said this. The plan to use the wolves against him was_ my_ 'pathetic' plan. "Who knows, maybe if you're good, I'll keep you alive as a blood slave after all of this is over. You can be mine, after I've established myself the ruler of all immortal races in this world. Doesn't that sound better than belonging to a worthless rouge from the depths of hell?" The vampire laughed at his own insult.

The bastard was so full of himself! If I had my hands free, I would have beaten him to a bloody-

You know, for being convinced everything was over and having such a pessimistic attitude only five minutes ago, I was doing pretty well with a newfound fighting spirit.

Perhaps it was the promise of bloodshed in the wind, or maybe I couldn't bear the thought of Reed dying… Either way, I sat on top of the mausoleum with my hands bound together and prayed that Reed would get his ass over here to kill the egotistical vampire behind me. The total irony of praying before a battle of the damned was evident enough, and maybe tonight God would humor me.

As if he'd ever humored me before, though.

My name is Hayley Kindler, and I was praying for a miracle that would actually come true this time around.


	24. To Lose My Life

A/N:

_**xxdarknessxfallsxx here to regretfully inform you that… Swan has died.  
Ok, not really. We're just really late with the update. Please forgive us (for the hundredth time)! I know what you guys were saying about the last chapter being too short, so here's a nice, juicy long one to quench your thirst. Enjoy it while you can! There's only one chapter left until the end.**_

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_**Chapter 24: To Lose My Life**_

_He said to lose my life or lose my love,_  
_That's the nightmare I've been running from,_  
_So let me hold you in my arms awhile,_  
_I was always careless as a child_  
_And there's a part of me that still believes,_  
_my soul will soar above the trees, But then _  
_a desperate fear flows through my blood, that_  
_our dead love's buried beneath the mud._  
_Lets grow old together, and die at the same time._  
_Lets grow old together, and die at the same time._

_To Lose My Life, White Lies_

* * *

I opened my eyes from the seemingly hopeless prayer, and focused on the landscape in front of me. Caden's army of brain-fried vampire marched to the eastern side of the cemetery. Their pace seemed slow but organized. On the other hand, the pack of wolves that the vampires marched toward looked unruly, and in-way-over-their-heads in comparison. It seemed hopeless to me that Reed's plan had any chance of beating out Caden's. I really hoped Reed had some sort of back-up plan… Anything to get us both out of this alive, and maybe kill Caden in the process.

I glanced at the evil bastard behind me. He'd made a seat (more like a throne) for himself by moving two blocks of granite together, and had resumed his mind-controlling duties, which took up all or most of his conscious attention.

Now was my chance to escape! I looked down…

And had almost forgotten how high up I was. Jumping down would probably result in a broken leg, or two. I rested my duct-taped hands against the edge of the roof and glanced down the side of the mausoleum wall. It had plenty of ridges and negative spaces, making it climbable… If my hands were free. I fingered the roof's stone edge and scraped my fingers on the roughness.

Perfect for tearing through tape.

* * *

_**Reed's POV**_

Reed leaned his weight against one of the trees outlining the cemetery's fence. Not too far off, the wolves were defending themselves against Caden's vampires; he wasn't close enough to tell who dominated.

He still had some time to kill before it was his time to kill, and that meant he could figure out exactly how the vampire-slaying weapon worked. His first examination of it wasn't very conclusive. The weapon looked like a simple pole with a three-prong claw on one end. Not very exciting.

However, this was before he looked over it again and discovered the weapon was a working _device_. The claw-like prongs were actually moving parts, which opened when detached from the main body of the weapon, then retracted when clicked back into place. The retractable claws suggested that it wasn't just a fancy stick with pointy parts on one end, but a_ shootable_ weapon. The baton-shaped body didn't look anything like a gun; although it did have a tiny snipe, Reed noticed.

The demon raised the snipe eye-level and pointed it at the marble sign near the entrance of the cemetery. He lined the sight with the letter "C" in the sign, ready to fire…

Except, how the hell did he fire this thing? Did it require gunpowder ammo, which was unlikely, or some magical fairy dust?

The sound of a branch snapping made Reed jerk around toward the noise, the vampire-slaying weapon still aimed and ready-to-fire. The battle between werewolf and vampire didn't sound any closer, but there was definitely something close by. Reed's crimson eyes surveyed back and forth slowly, searching for movement…

A rustle in the bushes to his left made him twist around again- and a dark body popped out of the bushes. It was a vampire! His eyes were pure black with bloodlust; his fangs were bared and headed straight for Reed.

Without anything else to defend himself with, Reed thought "fire!" Maybe he subconsciously thought the weapon would somehow listen, maybe he just panicked because there wasn't time to tuck away from the vampire's surprise attack. Either way, Reed would have been screwed if the weapon _didn't_ fire… which it did.

The detachable claw shot out and buried itself deep within the vampire's chest…and almost knocked Reed down from the kickback. Both men stumbled back, Reed in awe at his discovery and the vampire in agony as a red stain grew in his shirt around the talons. Reed saw now that the claw was connected to baton-part of the weapon by a seemingly limitless chain. The weapon had to be created of some dark magic since its mass didn't follow the physical laws of earth, and it was controlled by the possessor's thoughts.

Reed's red eyes followed along the lengthy chain until he met the wide, black eyes of the vampire before him.

They both stared at one another for a moment, knowing very well who held whose life in hand. Reed wondered if a mind-controlled vampire would still beg for its life, just like the ones he tortured only hours ago. Did turning your brain into an auto piloted killing machine take away basic instincts? Reed figured yes, because the vampire only grunted and attempted to rip out the metal in his chest like a pathetic, wounded animal.

Since a mental command worked on the weapon before, Reed thought "retract," just to re-test his hypothesis.

The vampire choked on blood as his heart was torn cleanly out of his chest.

The chain's length retracted inside the baton in Reed's hand, and the claw gently clicked back into place. The shiny metal was blood-covered now, and Reed dug the disgusting heart out of the talons before throwing it on the ground.

A smile played on the Reed's lips as the vampire's eyes rolled back into his head and he finally fell over, a silent scream etched into his features until the body began its disintegrated. The demon chuckled darkly to himself at his discovery. It was a sweet, sweet feeling knowing that the decaying flesh at his feet would be a certain mastermind soon enough… Caden would be a pile of ash before the sun rose!

What an idiot that conniving vampire was, to leave such an amazing weapon within reach of the enemy. Suddenly, another sound in the brush put Reed on high alert and he turned in time to see _three_ vampires emerging from the shadows into the few rays of moonlight that stretched to this side of the cemetery.

With his sensitive ears, Reed could hear the sounds of the battle escalating some hundred feet away.

He didn't have time for this, but it seemed the leeches were leaving him no choice. With a silent curse, Reed fired the claw-weapon and dispatched the three bloodsuckers back to hell as quickly as he could._ FIRE, retract, FIRE, retract!_Unfortunately, the slay-o-matic (a fitting name for the weapon) missed the last vampire's heart and hit him in the shoulder.

Reed was sure it hurt like a bitch- but it wouldn't finish him off.

No, instead, it only made the leech pissed-off and rush at Reed, throwing them both to the dirt. With a snarl, Reed pulled his fist back and snapped it forward with a speed that even _he_ didn't know he was capable of.

Reed heard the tell-tale crunch of bones, and felt blood and other substances coat the skin around his knuckles. He looked at the vampire, whose head had opened up in several places and gushed red and gray matter. With a disgusted sigh, Reed pulled himself to his feet, flicked the blood off the slay-o-matic, and headed straight towards where the battle currently raged.

He had a war to win.

* * *

_**Hayley's POV**_

Freeing my hands and climbing down the mausoleum was easy enough since Caden was logged out, doing his mind-control deal… I forgot to think of any vampire guards stationed _in front_ of the mausoleum. Caden was definitely no fool, which is how I felt right now as I stared at the back of the biggest, most muscular vampire I'd ever seen. _Of course_ Caden would know that he was vulnerable while he was controlling his minions, and need to keep some protection in case someone came straight for the source.

The giant vampire stood motionless as I held my breath and crept carefully around him. He stared straight ahead, never moving, never blinking… I thought I had a chance to get away from him undetected, but my foot stepped on an especially loud twig- which made the vampire lurch his head straight toward me.

My heart tried to jump out of my chest as his black, evil eyes locked on me.

This was it, my life was over.

Sorry, Reed! I wanted to see you one last time, but I guess it wasn't in the cards…

The more my mind rambled on about my death, I realized that seconds were still passing- the vampire was still staring at me, never moving. After several more moments, he took his heartless black eyes off me and looked forward again. I felt myself breathing again; inhale, exhale... Perhaps he was programmed- I mean, mind controlled- to only detect threats to Caden. A weak little human like me was hardly a red alert news flash.

I continued my escape, running through the rows and rows and _rows_ of tombstones. The sounds of the battle drew closer, and before I could avoid it, I was in the midst of the fighting. Supernatural creatures were everywhere! I took cover by a particularly large headstone so I could check which direction would be less dangerous…

First thing I noticed, sadly, was how horribly Reed's army fought. The vampires were picking the werewolves off like flies. There was a pretty fierce werewolf about fifteen feet away that bested two vampires at once- their heads went flying! The beast disappeared into the shadows… and I heard what sounded like a dog's wail not long after. Oddly, I didn't have any pity for the monsters that once tried to kill me, Reed's army or not.

However, Reed's horrible battle-planning ended up saving my ass. I discovered that weaving my way through a bloody slaughter was a lot easier than it looked. Being small and weak was actually a good thing when avoiding creatures much more lethal than me. Freedom was close at hand! I'd just stepped around an older tombstone when I slammed straight into a solid structure. I braced myself against what I ran into and grabbed… a chest?

I pushed myself off whoever I'd collided with and landed right on my butt. Dread curdled my insides as I looked up at a tall, lean figure outlined in shadows. Didn't really matter if it was a vampire or werewolf, since my demise would be the same. _Crap._ I guess being small and weak wasn't so great when the lethal things_ noticed_ me.

For real this time, goodbye Reed. If only I could have had one last kiss from you, evil demon or not…

The figure stepped from the darkness into the moonlight, and my fear was quickly replaced by relief. Reed smirked down at me, his red eyes alight with mischief… and another emotion I couldn't place.

"Did you get lost, sparky?" he asked lightly.

For a moment, I could do nothing but stare. I had been so sure that I would never see him again, and now here he was in all his demonic (or gorgeous) glory, and teasing me of all things! I pushed my torso up on my palms and continued to stare openly at Reed before a small smile tilted up my lips.

"Well, it certainly took you long enough." I said with a grin.

I felt my cheeks flush as he laughed at my remark. His smile was beautiful- how could I have ever been angry with him? He reached down to me, and just when I was about to take his hand, he bent over and picked up my entire body like it was nothing.

I felt like we could do anything we wanted, survive this battle and reach the stars, as long as I was in his arms.

"Sorry to end the moment too soon, but you're in the way," he told me with a smug look and began moving. I glanced around- we seemed to be somewhat secluded in this area of the cemetery, and he carried me toward the outside edge where it was even quieter.

"You know you're losing the fight, right?"

The demon set me down on a bench, a knowing smile still set on his lips. "I hope you have more faith in me than that."

With a small whistle, Reed signaled the rest of his army- lying in wait all around us- to ambush Caden's remaining vampires. A roar that shook the ground echoed throughout the graveyard, and Reed's army emerged from their cover to join the battle. The werewolves may have failed, but Reed saved Shepard's demons for last. They were fresh and ready for bloodshed, while the vampires were weakened and disorganized from the earlier chaos. Without a second to waste, the second wave started tearing and hacking away at any vampire they came across.

"You were saying?" He smiled somewhat evilly while asking.

Why had I ever doubted him?

* * *

_**Reed's POV**_

Victory would soon be theirs.

Reed smiled evilly before quickly glancing back down at Hayley; he was afraid that if he let her out of his sight for too long, she'd disappear. He felt so ecstatic just knowing she was alive! And as beautiful as ever. His sweet, darling Hayley…

He was glad she'd manage to escape, but now he'd still have to hunt down Caden and take revenge for kidnapping Hayley… and whatever else he did to her while she was missing.

He glanced over her features one more time, making sure that bastard bloodsucker didn't permanently scar her in_ any_ way. Reed joined Hayley on the bench and examined her a little more closely; after finding nothing too out of place aside from her paler complexion, he took several seconds to admire her beauty. Her delicate lashes and human eyes, her flushed cheeks and soft lips. He hadn't had the pleasure of her face in three days, and he could hardly make up for it in the few moments they had. As jumpy as ever, she let out a small gasp when Reed slipped his arms around her waist and pulled her tight against his chest.

Her body crashed into him; with a jolt, he realized how he'd never thought he would wrap his arms around her wonderful, slender form again. The feeling was incredible! She felt as exquisite as he remembered, and because of the threat of never holding her in his arms again, this moment of pure embrace meant so much more than the kinky, sex-filled nights he'd forced upon her shortly before she'd been kidnapped. The demon and human side of himself agreed: Hayley's forgiveness meant everything.

Now, the hope of their reunion in her rich, brown eyes made a low, possessive, growl leave his throat.

"Reed…" His name rolled off Hayley's lips with pure relief. He couldn't hold himself back in that moment from gripping her harder into him and claiming her lips in a passionate kiss. He met no resistance- if anything, she seemed as eager as he was, returning his kiss, and his passion.

The moment was short lived as a booming laugh reverberated in the air.

The lovers took their eyes away from each other to focus on the _vampire_ nearly rolling on the ground in hysteria several feet away.

The battle beyond them seemed much quieter now.

"How… How bloody fucking romantic!" Caden bellowed. His boisterous laughter couldn't be stopped; he nearly tripped before regaining his composure. A huge, muscular vampire stood stoically at Caden's side like a macho bodyguard- totally brainwashed.

Reed rolled his eyes in irritation and glanced down at Hayley. His Hayley.

"That's a cliche if I've ever seen one," he muttered to her softly, his eyes never leaving hers, "the evil villain interrupts the reuniting of the lovers he separated with some out-of-this-world plan to kill the hero."

"That would be you." Hayley replied, matching his soft tone. Caden's laughter could still be heard in the background.

"I know," Reed said with a grin. "I'm looking forward to it."

"Oh, I'll bet you are." Caden interrupted darkly, when he appeared only feet from them. His voice was completely devoid of humor. "You've ruined everything, you disgusting parasite."

Reed, unimpressed with the vampire's insult, raised an eyebrow. "Really? That's a bit like the pot calling the kettle black don't you think?"

Caden fumed, but couldn't conjure another witty comeback.

"Face it, Caden, you've lost. Judging from the lack of noise on the battlefield, I'd say my army destroyed yours. That means I should kill you now," Reed said, speaking just as calmly about killing the vampire as he would about the weather.

"Kill me?" he laughed. "And just how do you expect to do that? Even a dozen of your _filthy race_ has no contest with an older, stronger vampire like myself." The beefy guard on Caden's right mirrored his master's smug look- from mind control or in light of his master's confidence, Reed couldn't tell.

The demon frowned, seeming to look stumped at Caden's words. How would Reed successfully kill Caden? The vampire's maniacal grin only increased as his victory seemed clear.

Until Reed snorted with laughter.

"A vampire of five or five hundred will be just as dead without a heart," Reed replied, producing the vampire-heart-ripper-outer weapon. Faster than Hayley's sight could follow, he aimed the claw at Caden's muscular bodyguard and hit the poor bastard straight in the chest. A moment later, Reed held a fresh heart in his hand. "How do I expect to kill you?" Reed mocked, throwing the heart into the dirt. He wiped the talons of the slay-o-matic enough for the moonlight to reflect off the silver. "With this."

A smug smile tugged at his lips when Reed heard Caden's infuriated gasp. "Where did you get that?" The vampire demanded.

Reed laughed again. "When you took Hayley- stupid move, by the way- I stopped by your house in search of her, and found this instead." He turned around for a moment to give his woman a wink and a smile. Her blushed cheeks and gaze of admiration was well worth the risk of taking his eyes off Caden. "Funny how things work out, isn't it?"

"My second-in-command was ordered to clear out that apartment after I left," Caden scoffed, mostly to himself. He realized the fate of his second-in-command after seeing the violent gleam in Reed's eye.

"Julien, right? He sang like a bird by the time I was through with him."

"I'm going to make you suffer until your last breath." Caden growled, his eyes narrowing.

"Only if I don't get to you first," Reed retorted with a grim smile.

The two then became a series of blurs and grunts and thuds as they literally tried to beat the other into the ground. Hayley quickly jumped away from the fray- hating that she had to be one of those lame heroines that just stood on the sidelines, but saw no other option. Even still, standing there, just uselessly watching while the demon she was in love with was possibly being pummeled to death did not sit well with her.

So she began to pace- as if she were a referee on the sidelines of some gladiator wrestling match. Winner takes all, and the loser dies a horrible death.

Reed, on the other hand, was very confident in his ability to defend both himself and Hayley. He supposed he had the upper hand, because Reed, unlike Caden, hadn't been exhausting his mind by controlling an army of three-hundred or so vampires. The match seemed to go in his favor for awhile; Caden only went for the hand that held the slaying weapon, so it easy to block and reciprocate a punch to the vampire's jaw, temple, or just below the ear on his neck.

Both men broke away from their struggle and stepped back far enough to stare menacingly at one another, but not lay a finger on the other. Bright crimson and dark, blood-red eyes met and told fantasies of torture and burning to each other; Caden's fangs clicked inside his jaw, Reed's demon heated his veins.

Hayley stared back and forth at the two of them, locked in a deadly stare.

For a long while, the girl felt like they were simply glaring at once another. Finally, Reed lost focus and put one knee on the ground, and his face contorted as if he were in pain. Caden's delirious expression seemed to become even creepier as he saw his enemy falter.

"Reed, what's happening?" Hayley shouted with worry.

The problem was, Reed still had a bit of the steroid-infused Panacea in his body, which meant the bastard vampire in front of him had a foothold of mind-control on Reed's brain. He thought his demonic gift of control would easily work to keep Caden in one place, so that when he did fire the weapon, it'd be sure to hit its target. Except… he'd forgotten to calculate how long Panacea stayed in the body. The demon's bright crimson eyes flashed toward Caden as he fought, with every bit of strength he possessed, to make the vampire bend to _his_ control, instead of the other way around.

At last, the vampire was forced to take a knee as well. The raving expression was replaced with pain and rage as Reed overcame Caden's mind control and forced the vampire to the ground.

"Don't worry Hayley, Caden's just deluding himself with the concept that he's stronger than I am."

The master vampire sliced his fangs in the air towards Reed. The blood-red poison of his eyes concentrated on Reed, but then, he took notice of Hayley, only yards away… "I don't have to be stronger than you. I only need to be faster."

In an instant, Caden threw a handful of stones at Reed's head- breaking the demon's concentration and the pull of his demonic control- to go for Hayley. During that fraction of a second, the demon saw pure red. It figured that the bastard would try to kill the innocent, defenseless human when he realized there was no way he could fairly beat Reed. With a roar of fury, Reed leapt up and tackled Caden to the ground. Hayley froze in place, unable to keep up with the supernatural speed the two were playing at.

"Don't go near her!" Reed shouted; intense anger swirled in his eyes.

The two wrestled violently; when Caden became dominant he spoke. "I think I'll kill her just to spite you," Caden laughed, the mad grin returning to his face. "You can't have everything- not while I have nothing."

"I wouldn't let that worry you too much," Reed said amiably. He fought back until he was in control of their struggle. "You'll be dead in a few minutes anyway."

Reed wasn't exactly sure what happened next. One moment, Caden was pinned on the ground, and the next, he had broken free and was standing behind Hayley, cocking his arm back- no doubt, to rip her heart out from behind. Reed didn't waste time on thinking or shouting out to her- he only acted on what felt right. He was up and pushing Hayley out of the way _just in time_ for Caden's hand to pierce the ribcage and disappear into the demon's chest.

The look he and Hayley shared barely lasted a blink, but felt like a lifetime.

"Reed!" Hayley cried.

The demon sank to the ground in a hiss of agony- his skin grew pale before he reached the grass.

Caden's face was a mask of faux shock before it dissolved in to a smug, somewhat lunatic look. "Well," he said coolly, as if he were trying to mask his overflowing joy. "That couldn't have worked better if I had planned it myself. Oh wait, I did."

From where he lay on the ground, Reed laughed weakly; his breath came in short gasps.

"Yeah, well, I bet you didn't plan on this- you sick fuck." Before Reed finished his sentence, he fired the slaying weapon directly over the vampire's heart, and the claw ripped straight through Caden's chest due to the proximity. Before Reed commanded the weapon to retract, the vampire was already suffering the effects of disintegration. The crazed, blood-red eyes rolled up into their decaying sockets, and Reed felt relief wash over him as he watched the vampire waste away. By the time the claw ripped back through Caden's chest- taking his cold heart with it- he was just a crumbling mass of ash.

Reed smiled in victory before the pain overtook him and he grabbed his chest, only faintly aware that Hayley was beside him, crying softly.

Regardless of her sobs and the blood flowing from his front- he had the strangest feeling that he was exactly where he was supposed to be. In this moment, he was the master of his own destiny.

What a sweet feeling that was.

* * *

_**Hayley's POV**_

I'd barely had time to register that Reed saved my life before he'd been stabbed through.

My love had a gaping hole in his chest and I could do was cry.

I fell on to my knees next to Reed's weakened frame, my arms held out and ready to grab and draw him closer. The way his limbs convulsed violently made me hesitate. He was losing too much fluid… My fingers levitated inches above his skin, and started shaking just as much as he was- the difference was that a blood waterfall wasn't gushing from my chest.

Blood. So much blood.

Everywhere.

Before I could completely lose it, Reed snatched my hands out of the air and pulled me down from a panic attack. "Hayley, listen to me." My eyes focused on his face, his handsome face that I wanted to kiss again.

A face fighting to stay alive.

"You're fucking perfect," he declared harshly, even though his breaths were quick and shallow. The grip on my hands tightened; he pulled me closer so I could hear him whisper. "I'm in love with you. I've _been_ in love with you for awhile. I could never tell you before, because you really don't deserve a demon… No, what I mean is, I don't deserve you, angel."

Tears formed in my eyes again as his lips pulled back into his signature smirk that always made my knees weak.

I wanted to smile too, but then Reed's face twisted with pain as his body convulsed again. There was a dawning realization on the cusp of my mind that I didn't want to be true. My grip on his bloodied hands tightened.

"Reed, tell me what to do. You can't die! You can't…" My words did nothing to mend the situation, I could see him fading and that scared me more than anything else ever had.

"Please," I begged. "You can't leave me."

Reed smirked again- an arrogant, devil-may-care smirk. "I can, and I will. You're released from my service. Your mother's cancer is gone; be happy, meet a guy, get married, have kids..." He trailed off as violent coughs overtook him. When he finally stopped, a trail of blood fell from his lips and down his chin.

I shook my head in denial. "No, I don't want any of that- I love _you_. I _want you._"

Reed squeezed my hand tighter and tears slicked down my cheeks.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. The crimson of his eyes was a darker red again- just like when I'd met him.

"Please don't go." I cried. "What can I do?"

"Just...just stay with me for awhile- it won't be long now. I don't want to die alone."

Hearing those words from him nearly broke me. This was the first time I'd ever seen Reed truly vulnerable, and that meant that nothing good was going to happen. With a start, I realized that there was no plan B for this- there was no magical vial of Panacea that would suddenly heal his wounds and let him stay with me.

I was losing him.

A sob escaped my lips as I regrouped his fingers in mine. "Yes, I'll stay with you."

That seemed to be the only encouragement Reed needed before he began to slip even further away from me.

A broken, pained sigh left Reeds lips as his convulsions shook him even more violently.

"I love you," I whispered, my voice barely audible. Unable to speak, I kissed his bloody knuckles, hoping my lips would cease his pain and make the seconds travel by slower. Reed paled, and couldn't hold in a cry of pain before he finally managed to whisper:

"So long, Sparky."

Then, Reed took one last, long-suffering breath; his eyes closed, his blood stopped flowing, and he was gone.

I'm Hayley Kindler, and this is undoubtedly the worst night of my fucking life.


	25. The End

_**A/N: **__**xxdarknessxfallsxx here... It has been such a pleasure to have joined in with the creation of this amazing story. I want to take a moment to tell **__**Swan's Catastrophe how absolutely wonderful she is for dreaming this up, and then having the courage to ask me (and I imagine in a very small voice), "I want this story to be really dark and sexy, will you write my smut?" From there, collaboration began until this final chapter, which we are SO proud to give you. It has been so much fun writing for this story, and I love it just as much as all you readers do. I'm sad that it's over! However, I know it won't be the end of Swanxxdarkness ficlets.**_

_**Until next time, then**_

* * *

_**Chapter 25: The End**_

_This is the end  
Beautiful friend  
This is the end  
My only friend, the end _

_It hurts to set you free_  
_But you'll never follow me_  
_The end of laughter and soft lies_  
_The end of nights we tried to die_

_This is the end_

_ - The End, The Doors  
_

* * *

This couldn't be happening.

My lover wasn't lifeless in my arms, he didn't have a huge hole in his chest, and his eyes weren't closed because he was _dead_.

The more I tried to deny the red, wet, reality all over my clothes and lap, the more tears fell from my eyes. Reed's alabaster skin was a sickly gray now, instead of the smooth white it was when he was alive. The longer I sat with his corpse in my arms, the heavier he felt and the colder it seemed outside. I wouldn't move, though. I couldn't leave his body to be just another casualty on this graveyard battlefield.

I heard footsteps approaching from behind… a handful of Shepard's demons remained alive after the fight was over. Sole survivors, perhaps. They made a half-circle around my backside, and I would have been nervous if I actually cared about anything in the living world. Actually, to my surprise, they folded their hands and lowered their heads to give Reed some form of respect. When I glanced up at the few, I didn't see Shepard among them.

"Our leaders may have fallen, but we won the battle. We owe this demon, Reed, a proper burial now that he has proven himself to the race," one of the demons declared to the others.

My grip around Reed's corpse tightened at the mention of a _burial_. I didn't feel ready to let him go- but it seemed silly to cling to a dead demon body. I could hold onto Reed metaphorically in my heart; my time with him had been short, but I would miss him until I died. Besides, it was important to me that Reed saw a proper burial, and I know he didn't want to end up one of the hundreds of corpses piled in the junkyard like fellow members of his race. I glanced up at the demons standing around behind me.

"Reed didn't do all of this to prove himself to his race." My voice sounded fiercer than I felt. "He did all of this so that he would have a future, and so other demons like him would have the freedom to do whatever they wanted with their own lives."

Instead of ignoring me, the handful of demons regarded my speech.

"Reed is dead," I stated harshly, gesturing toward his body. "But you have a future now. Don't waste it."

How could I say this to these demons, and at the same time know that these words would be hard to follow myself? Finding a future without Reed seemed impossible right now.

The demons nodded before gently removing Reed's corpse from my arms. It took everything in me not to clutch at him and never let him go- but I eventually did. The demons rose and headed towards the more vacant part of the cemetery. I watched as they put the man I loved in to the ground, and when they finished burying the remainder of their dead, the demons nodded their heads towards me before fading in to oblivion.

I was alone in the graveyard.

I glanced down the rows of headstones. The wind blew, rustling up the fallen leaves and sending an icy chill up my spine. I shivered, and realized that this was where Reed and I first met. How ironic that it'd be the same place we said goodbye.

After staring silently at Reed's burial place for what seemed like hours- telling him in my mind all of the things in death that I could never tell him when he was alive- I forced myself to walk away.

I knew I walked the entire way home, but if I tried to remember any of it, I knew I'd come up blank. By the time I reached my front door, I was so exhausted- emotionally and physically- that I could hardly keep myself standing.

When I reached for the doorknob, it turned of its own accord; the front door swung open to reveal a dark figure in the doorway.

For one wild moment, it felt as if my heart would jump out of my chest. This time, for joyous reasons.

_Reed._

_He somehow came back_!

Before the thought could fully form, the figure stepped from the shadows into the glow of the porch light.

It wasn't Reed.

It was my mom.

"Welcome home, sweetie," my mom greeted with a bright, happy smile.

That- that pure love and cheerfulness that radiated from her- was what sent me over the edge. Right then and there, I burst into tears, unleashing all of the feelings I'd been holding in since I watched the light fade from my demon's eyes.

How bittersweet my tears tasted as I clung to my beloved mother, only wishing for my demon to materialize.

* * *

_**Reed's POV**_

Reed woke up with a start. He was dead; he definitely remembered dying, remembered seeing Hayley's face crumple when she realized the he wasn't going to magically heal from his wounds. Reed remembered darkness- and yet, here he was. Not dead.

No, instead, Reed found himself standing before the demon elders. Again.

Lilith, in all her naked glory- save for the boa constrictor- rose an eyebrow in Reed's direction. Clearing his face of any unruly emotions, Reed schooled his features into a mask of boredom and slight admiration.

"Elders, summoning me twice in the same year? I'm honored, truly," Reed drawled.

Abaddon grinned, showing off rows of sharp, shiny, teeth.

Lilith chuckled lightly. "You are aware that you're dead, aren't you?"

Reed widened his eyes in mock surprise.

"You're kidding? I was wondering what that giant hole in my chest was from... Dying, hm? Now it all makes so much sense."

Lilith didn't take well to the sarcasm and barred her teeth at him; Reed blandly wondered if the demons could hurt him, even though he was dead.

"Anyway," Samael began, "You died by sacrificing your own life for that of an innocent." Samael paused, waiting for Reed to break in with some sarcastic comment- when Reed made no sound, he continued. "You have proven to the elders that you still retain some of your humanity." Samael declared.

At that, Reed felt as if ice was starting to form in the pit of his stomach. This wasn't sounding too good.

"Because of this," Amy said in her soprano-high voice, picking up where Samael left off, "you have been granted a boon by both the demon elders and the seven archangels."

That surprised Reed, so much so that he was sure it showed on his face before he could return his features into an indifferent mask.

"What sort of boon?" Reed asked wearily.

"The demons have agreed that you should be allowed to have a second chance- however, the angels thought your selfless qualities would prevent you from being a good demon- and we sure as hell weren't going to let those suck-ups turn you into a heavenly slave... so we compromised," Abaddon said with a smirk.

"And this compromise would entail?" Reed prompted. He could hardly believe what he was hearing.

"You will be mortal," Lilith replied in a peeved tone. "Stripped of all of your demonic powers, your appearance will be altered slightly to allow you to better fit in with the humans. You will grow old like the humans, and you will die eventually as all mortals must."

Reed stared at the elders open-mouthed.

They called that a boon? He was seven hundred years old, damn it, and now they were making him _human. _Of course there was the plus of being able to see Hayley, but..._human_?

"I know what you're thinking." Lilith said with a small smile. "But rest assured young one, we will be watching over you- and we might even decide to grant you a few more boons if you please us."

"I don't think I can survive pleasing you people more than once- especially now that you're making me human," Reed muttered. But his words held only half of the bite that he was capable of. He wasn't dead anymore. He would be able to see Hayley again!

The thought brought warmth to every part of Reed's body- and maybe a small grin to his face despite the indifferent mask.

"It is done," Lilith announced, orange eyes gleaming. "Farewell, Reed. I hope to see you soon."

"Not too soon," Reed replied with a curt smile.

The demons smiled at Reed in return.

"We'll see," they all said together. Which was way creepy.

With a flick of Lilith's finger, Reed found himself back in the graveyard- alive and human.

He frowned down at himself, wondering what he looked like as a human. He hoped Hayley would be able to recognize him. And with that thought, he began _walking_ in the direction of Hayley's house.

* * *

_**Hayley's POV**_

It had been three days since Reed's death and I still couldn't find the energy to get out of bed. I stared up at the ceiling mostly, at all the LED light stars; I couldn't find the will to gaze at the real things only a few feet away through my window. The only force that kept me eating and drinking was my mom's soothing voice. Every morning, the smell of her breakfast would wake me from my slumber, and every evening, her company would ease me to sleep. I was happy that things in my house were back to the way they were before my mom's cancer, but there was a black hole in my universe of stars- a black hole named Reed.

Every waking moment, Reed was in my thoughts. Every dream I had, Reed was there. Everything I looked at reminded me of him somehow.

I was driving myself insane with longing, and I knew my mom was getting worried about me, but I couldn't force myself to put on an act.

Reed was gone. Dead.

Even with my mom home again, I felt hollower than ever before, and this emptiness grew every day. Today (when I was in one of my semi-lucid states), I convinced her to take a "me" day and pamper herself. Honestly, it was just an excuse to get her out of the house, so she wouldn't be there to see me cry like an oversized baby. I think she suspected as much, but she agreed anyway.

So now, here I was, lying on the couch, feeling and probably looking like shit, while I watched Titanic for the third time today. Joy.

And believe me, the irony was not missed on this girl: two people from completely different worlds falling in love, deciding to be together… only to be broken apart by the death of the sinfully gorgeous-looking male in the story. Oh _yeah_, I could definitely relate to Rose.

Only Reed hadn't frozen to death. (Could demons even freeze to death?)

No, he'd practically had his heart torn at and then had to suffer a slow, agonizing death.

And Rose thought watching Leo sink to the bottom of the ocean was bad...some girls have all the luck.

I was midway through my rant to the T.V. Rose about 'why the hell she couldn't just scoot the hell over so they could both lay down on the damn floating door,' when the doorbell rang.

_Just what I need,_ I thought bitterly _Some damn Jehovah's Witness to see me all red-eyed and snot nosed._

With a sigh, I made my way to the door and threw it open without bothering to look in the peep-hole.

"Look, whatever you're selling- I'm not interested, so just-" I froze mid-sentence when I saw who was standing on my porch.

"Well," began a familiar and sarcastic voice, "only if you're_ sure_ you don't want to buy anything, I'll leave you alone. Just to let you know though, Panacea and Human Souls are being sold at the lowest price of the season," Reed said with a smirk, eyebrows rising up and down repeatedly.

For a few moments all I could do was stare silently. He was still as pale as alabaster, his hair was still the color of newly fallen snow- his eyes were different. They weren't red anymore, but they weren't any one color in particular either- as I stared, they changed. It was like a bunch of color crystals were shoved into a glass and mixed around. The outcome was hypnotic.

"Reed?" I said, my voice cracking as teas sprang in my eyes. "Is it really you?"

Reed's face lost all trace of laughter and he gave me a solemn smile. "Yeah. I'm...human now." He opened his mouth to say something else, but I had already closed the distance between us and began smothering him with kisses. I hugged him tightly, as I close as he could get to me, and rejoiced in the feel of strong, powerful arms wrapping around my waist to squeeze me even closer.

"It's really you," I said, staring up at his face in amazement. "You're alive. You came back!"

Reed's hand came up to cup my cheek and he smiled, leaning down to kiss me softly. I sighed at the feel of his lips against mine, at the way he nipped them lightly before exploring my mouth with his tongue.

He was really here. Really with me and not dead.

"I love you," I said before I could stop myself. "I love you so much."

Reed kissed me more fiercely, before pulling away to nuzzle my cheek.

"I love you too, Sparky."

I looked up at my demon-turned-human and smiled. My face must have said, _'you do?'_ Because Reed chuckled and repeated the words until I laughed.

"So what do we do now?" I asked.

Reed's hands trailed down my spine until they cupped my butt. "I kind of liked where this was going…" he said against my ear, his warm breath sending shivers through my body, and his words sending a tingling sensation through my belly and other places.

"Hm," I said teasingly. "I don't know if we have time- my mom could be back any minute."

I took a moment to repeat that sentence in my head. _We,_ Reed and I, and _my mom_ were all in the same sentence; my universe of stars was whole and happy at last. I glanced up at Reed.

His eyes had darkened, turning from teal, to cerulean blue, to black. I kinda liked this new, always-changing-eye-color thing. His hands skimmed around the front of my shirt as he nibbled lightly at my throat, his teeth scraping the soft flesh there. I felt my heartbeat quicken in excitement as my back came up against the front door.

"I think," Reed said between kisses, "that we've got all the time in the world."

I smiled at him before pulling him closer to me- if that was possible. I liked the sound of spending forever with Reed. He smirked against my lips, then reached behind me to open the door and bring us both inside.

Yep, all the time in the world- with Reed- was looking really good right now.

_**The End- for now ;)**_


End file.
